Ballhaus Naunynstraße
The Ballhaus Naunynstraße in Berlin-Kreuzberg stands for an artistic practice that has significantly changed the German-speaking theater landscape: post-migrant theater. It was founded in 2008 by Shermin Langhoff. Under the direction of Wagner Carvalho, Black, queer, and perspectives of Colour have been brought to the forefront since 2013. Since then, the house has acted as a catalyst for post-colonial discourses and decolonial practices in art and everyday life.
In-house productions and international guest performances, theater, dance, performances, readings, discussion events such as the 1. Indaba Schwarzer Kulturschaffender in Deutschland (1st Indaba of Black Cultural Workers in Germany) (2015), film screenings, concerts, and interdisciplinary festivals such as the international performance festival Permanente Beunruhigung (permanent unease) (2018) or the sound festival Decolonial Frequencies (2021/22), as well as – very importantly – the biennial festival Black Berlin Black since 2013, form the diverse program. Supporting emerging talents through the akademie der autodidakten (academy of autodidacts) and enabling unconventional entry into the field, are important components of the operation. As the only repertoire theater of Berlin's independent scenes, it focuses on sustainable visibility of actors of Colour, Black protagonists, and queer artists. In 2023, the Ballhaus Naunynstraße was honoured with the Federal Theater Prize for its exemplary work.
The Ballhaus Naunynstraße was built in 1863 as a dance hall in a Gründerzeit building. Until the end of the 1930s, it was used as a restaurant. During the National Socialist era, the city used the hall to house forced laborers. After World War II, music and dance activities resumed, but only until the 1960s, after which the ballroom served only as a storage space. In the 1970s, monument conservators saved the building from demolition. After extensive renovation, it passed into the ownership of the Kreuzberg district office and has since been operated as a cultural center. Since 2020, the Ballhaus Naunynstraße has belonged to the state of Berlin.
Naunynstraße 27
10997 Berlin
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