Echo Chamber

Katharina Andes designs the festival venues for asphalt and marks the performance spaces in the cityscape with artistic works. In her installations, the artist weaves together architecture and textiles, clothing and space in particular.
– 24 July 2025

»One Song« is theatre with the breathless feeling of an action film. Choreographer Miet Warlop manages to strike a balance between sport, competition and rock concert. The performers work themselves into a kind of trance until they are completely exhausted, giving their all – right down to the last note and drop of sweat. Read an interview with Miet Warlop about her piece here.
– 12 July 2025

»Goldstück« addresses misogyny, violence against women and right-wing radicalisation. Verena Güntner wrote the play as a commission for the theatre collective Pièrre.Vers; it is her debut as a playwright. As part of her research, she interviewed Christina Clemm, a specialist lawyer for family and criminal law who has been representing victims of gender-based and racist violence and their relatives for 28 years.
– 23 June 2025

Why director Amir Reza Koohestani started running after the failure of the ‘Green Movement’ and ‘Woman Life Freedom’ in Iran, how his globally acclaimed theatre play ‘Blind Runner’ came about and what a marathon has to do with resistance and freedom.
– 6 May 2025

On the occasion of the Bundestag elections on 23 February 2025, the German Stage Association has launched the #CultureinFundamentalLaw campaign to set an example for the promotion of democracy and culture. As part of the German Theatre Association, we are taking part in this campaign.
– 13 February 2025

Author Juliane Hendes on her play “Schaf sehen.”, how conspiracy narratives threaten democracy and whether art can be a way out.
– July 10, 2024

‘Our Son’ is set in a living room in Serbia. The homosexual son is already an adult, lives as far away as possible and comes home to visit. The parents love their child, but simply cannot find a way to accept his homosexuality. Who is to blame for the fact that their son is not ‘like the rest of the normal world’? Did the father not care enough about him? Is it because his mother sent him to choir? And the son just wants to introduce his friend ...
– 20 June 2024

The members of the artist collective Aurora Negra develop theatre out of their biographies and speak on stage in the first person, as the subject of their own story. Their first joint production ‘Aurora Negra’ celebrated its premiere at the Teatro Nacional D. Maria II in Lisbon in 2020. It was the first performance of a play written and presented on stage by black Portuguese women of African descent in the 175-year history of the Portuguese national theatre. It deals with issues that define us as a society – freedom, equality, representation, justice. Cleo Diára, Isabél Zuaa and Nádia Yracema spoke before the premiere about their experiences as black female artists in the predominantly white cultural scene, which are certainly transferable to many countries around the world.
– 24 May 2024

How do you take dance out of the dance studio? Danish choreographer Mette Ingvartsen has developed the concept of ‘permeable choreography’ and makes social and political issues the building blocks of her productions. Here she explains how the idea for ‘Skatepark’ came about and what skating and dance have in common.
– 16 April 2024

The award-winning Ukrainian writer and poet Halyna Kruk delivered a moving festival speech at asphalt 2023 about the importance of art and literature in times of war. We document her speech verbatim. Translated from Ukrainian by Beatrix Kersten.
– June 23, 2023

Composer and festival director Bojan Vuletic met with Nate Wooley in his studio. They talked about Nate's approach to his instrument, the music magazine he publishes, ‘Sound American’, and creativity in general.
– 22 June 2023

The production ‘Dunkeldorf’ by the theatre collective Pièrre.Vers deals with the bomb attack on 27 July 2000 at the Wehrhahn S-Bahn station in Düsseldorf. To date, no one has been convicted for the devastating act, and hardly anyone remembers it. How could this happen? Author and dramaturge Juliane Hendes searches for answers.
– 18 June 2023

On the occasion of the world premiere of ‘Oasis de la Impunidad’ in April 2022 at the Schaubühne Berlin as part of the ‘Festival International Neue Dramatik’ (FIND), writer Joseph Pearson spoke with director Marco Layera and dramaturges Elisa Leroy and Martín Valdés-Stauber about the background to the production.
– 9 June 2023

‘Verrückt nach Trost’ has been unanimously praised by critics and is already considered a ‘great moment in theatre.’ Dramaturge Dan Kolber describes his experiences during rehearsals with Devid Striesow, Ursina Lardi, André Jung and Sebastian Blomberg, and how the production took shape under the direction of Thorsten Lensing.
– 31 May 2023

When people leave their homeland and head for Europe, it marks a radical break in their life story. Friends and families stay behind, former careers are abandoned, and dreams change. The lives of Junior, Lateef, and Aloys from West Africa have also taken a unique turn. Their plan to play professional football in Europe ended on the theater stage – as members of the Star Boys, a performance collective from Antwerp.
– May 23, 2023, by Chika Unigwe

Tümay Kılınçel and Cornelius Schaper in conversation with Alexandra Wehrmann about their dance wish machine 'kaleiDANCEscope,' missing dances, and how a mini-stage in a caravan affects the audience.
– July 6, 2022

Anke Retzlaff, Peter Florian Berndt, and Paul Jumin Hoffmann discuss their production "What's Worth Fighting For", which premieres at asphalt 2022.
– July 1, 2022

He is a poet, musician and visual artist. During this year's asphalt Festival, Marlon Bösherz will move into the Weltkunstzimmer to live and work in an open studio. Visitors will gain insight into artistic creative processes and can follow Bösherz's drawing, reading, writing and thinking up close – a pure, immediate glimpse into the life of an artist. Alexandra Wehrmann spoke with Marlon Bösherz.
– 30 June 2022

Author and dramaturge Juliane Hendes discusses the production "Endstation fern von hier", artistic work in the context of historical reappraisal, and blind spots in the culture of remembrance.
– June 27, 2022

Choreographer Doris Uhlich on her fascination with the body, crossing boundaries and how to make the perfect slime.
– 26 June 2022

Lucy Wilke discusses her artistic work and the production SCORES THAT SHAPED OUR FRIENDSHIP, which will be featured at the asphalt Festival 2022.
– 22 June 2022

Choreographer Amanda Piña discusses her research in the streets of Matamoros for the development of the piece “Frontera | Border”, indigenous roots, and the political and social power of dance.
– June 15, 2022

Director Helge Schmidt on his new production “Die Krebsmafia” (The Cancer Mafia) and the connection between theater and journalism.
– May 25, 2022

How can people with disabilities gain better access to theatres?
What needs to change so that they can also work on and behind the stage? These and other questions will be addressed at the ALL IN International Symposium, which is being held in cooperation with the asphalt Festival 2022.
– 10 May 2022

Director Helgard Haug from Rimini Protokoll talks to Christof Seeger-Zurmühlen about the production “Chinchilla Arschloch, waswas”, the story behind the play, and why no two performances are alike.
– June 23, 2021

Florentina Holzinger on her work in dance, gender roles on stage, and how to keep pushing boundaries. A conversation with Christof Seeger-Zurmühlen
– June 18, 2021

Dr. Bastian Fleermann, director of the Düsseldorf Memorial and Remembrance Site, on the relevance of the Majdanek trial for the city. Recorded by Christof Seeger-Zurmühlen.
– May 25, 2021