No closure!

Cultural institutions in fifteen cities have formed an alliance which artistically explores the crimes and background of the so-called National Socialist Underground (NSU) in a nationwide theatre project. The alliance consists of theatre artists who live in the German cities which have been directly impacted by the crimes – specifically the murders of nine citizens, most of whom were of immigrant descent – committed by the racist right-wing extremists of the NSU. The project also includes participants from cities where the NSU perpetrators grew up, lived or found support. The project emphasises the perspectives of the victims’ families and their immigrant communities. It also thematically addresses the responsibility of society and public institutions for the tragic events.

The project is conceived as a three-week, decentralised theatre project, slated to take place in autumn 2021. The partner institutions will host parallel, thematically related premieres and vernissages throughout Germany. These will be accompanied by an extensive, discursive and artistic programme of events in all the cities – from film presentations to debates, readings and accompanying exhibitions.

The project also includes two special sub-projects. The first, “Manifest(o)”, is a transmedial, participative oratorio by the composer Marc Sinan which will be rehearsed and performed together with international artists at key locations that witnessed NSU violence. The second, a multilingual touring exhibition entitled “Open Process” features artistic works that highlight immigrant knowledge about the NSU complex. The short films, drawings, and spatial and sound installations examine racism in its many facets and focus on practices of resistance.

Artistic directors: Tunçay Kulaoğlu, Simon Meienreis
Curator: Ayşe Güleç
Artists: Iva Bittová, Mirko Borscht, Emre Elivar, Mateja Meded, Hito Steyerl, Marc Sinan, Volkan T, Fritz Laszlo Weber, Derya Yildirim et al.