© Alina Simmelbauer
MIRROR // MIRROR
The dangers of National socialist injustice being relativized, no longer just by neo-fascists but also by conspiracy theorists and right-wing populists, are especially evident in the current crisis. Consequently, at this time when it is still crucial to take a clear stand against forgetting and relativization, Theater der Jungen Welt Leipzig (TDJW) (Leipzig Young Spectator's Theater) is developing the three-part project MIRROR // MIRROR over the course of a year.
In cooperation with various cultural, political and scientific institutions as well as artists, aspects of the history of National Socialist injustice in Leipzig and references to contemporary forms of right-wing radicalization are discussed in interdisciplinary and transmedia formats.
AN INTERACTIVE THEATER SIMULATION GAME ABOUT RADICALIZATION ON THE INTERNET [14 PLUS]
Just imagine: In 2022, the European Court of Justice ruled that European data could only be stored on European servers. As a result, companies like Facebook/Meta and TikTok announced that they would shut down their services in Europe and then actually acted on their threat. Europe is a social media wasteland. But not for long: "HYDRA" is the name of the new social media platform that promises to do it all better than the companies that came before. In order to do so, "HYDRA" needs you!
You compete against each other in four teams, collect followers and playfully try out the functions of the new platform. But is "HYDRA" truly committed to eliminating filter bubbles and echo chambers? And what happened to Jules, the prototypical "User 0"?
As a theatrical simulation game, ON THE OTHER SIDE takes the audience into the world of likes and follows, troll attacks and bot armies, and asks why social network structures so often foster disinformation and radicalization.
Premiere: May 7, 2022
MOBILE GAME ON THE TRACKS OF NS FORCED LABOR IN THE URBAN AREA OF LEIPZIG [14 PLUS]
Finding ideal places to work and live in the future via telepathic vibe scan - that's the concept of the new Leipzig-based startup company "vibezig." But how to deal with memories that appear in places previously thought to be historically unencumbered?
For TDJW, game designer and curator Sebastian Quack creates a new approach to the history of forced labor in Nazi Leipzig and the debate on memory culture. Similar to "Pokémon GO," players move through the city with their smartphones. As scouts of the startup, they accept orders via app, check out the vibe of locations, and in the process are drawn deeper and deeper into the question of how to deal with the memories attached to these places: Who has an interest in preserving them? What opportunities do they offer? And who would prefer to simply erase them?
Launch: September 30, 2022
A PARTICIPATIVE DISTRICT PROJECT IN THE EAST OF LEIPZIG ABOUT RESISTANCE AND SOLIDARITY IN THE PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE [14 PLUS].
In THE FUTURE IS YOURS, people between the ages of 14 and 78 deal with the perspectives of former forced laborers and their visions for solidarity. When forced laborers say to us: "THE FUTURE IS YOURS", this does not only mean that the future belongs to us. It also means that we are responsible for shaping the present in such a way that a tyranny like that of National Socialism cannot be repeated.
The focus of this interdisciplinary artistic project is a collaborative investigation of possible forms of resistance and solidarity in the past, present and future. To this end, the TDJW is establishing a theater and art space in East Leipzig, where the following questions, among others, will be explored: What can we learn from the experiences and perspectives of people who had to work as forced laborers during World War II? In what ways are our stories interwoven? What does solidarity mean? And how can we stand together for an emancipated and solidary society on both a small and a large scale?
The results of the artistic work will be shown in November as part of a performative installation in East Leipzig.
Premiere: November 9, 2022
Funding country: Germany
Duration: 01.10.2021 until 31.12.2022