Violence doesn’t begin only when it becomes visible. It can lie in glances, in language, in labels, in the feeling of not being included or represented—and in the way we remember. If violence takes many forms, then self-defense must also encompass a spectrum.
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Berlin Theatre Volksbuehne
With the School of Self-Defense, the Volksbühne am Rosa-Luxemburg-Platz invites you to rethink self-defense—not just as a reaction, but as a practice that can be shared: in the body, in space, and in community.
The School of Self-Defense takes its starting point in the artistic practice of Davi Pontes and Wallace Ferreira. In their work, the two artists from Rio de Janeiro explore how violence is inscribed in the body and how one can react to it and offer resistance through one’s own movements.
The School opens up this practice: it transfers it into a collective space where it can be shared, passed on, and expanded upon from other perspectives. With its focus on participation and shared decision-making, the School of Self-Defense is an open network of workshops, discussions, performances, ballroom events, dance theater, and collective formats.
Artists, thinkers, and communities from Berlin, Brazil, and beyond come together to exchange ideas and generate knowledge: In the discursive formats, voices such as that of theorist Denise Ferreira da Silva analyze global connections between racialization and violence. Conversations—including one with dance theorist André Lepecki—also open up new perspectives on performance as a political space.
A Major Ball on the Main Stage brings together international and local scenes. In categories such as Runway, Performance, and Realness, identity, belonging, and presence are not only represented but also constructed.
A Kiki Ball at the Prater is aimed specifically at emerging performers and local communities. New voices—in particular those who want to be heard and seen or who wish to try their hand at performing—are especially invited.
The weekend is complemented by workshops, lectures, and discussions with international artists and thinkers:
Brazilian artist Puma Camillê combines capoeira and voguing in her practice, developing physical strategies that bridge martial arts and performance.
Ana Pi, also from Brazil, works on the body, memory, and diasporic narratives, exploring how history is inscribed in the body.
The artist and researcher Castiel Vitorino Brasileiro explores physicality, spirituality, and resistance as forms of cultural self-assertion.
