Masterclass with the Dramaturg Imanuel Schipper (Rimini Protokoll)

26 October

16:00 – 18:00

Lieu : Théâtre  de la Cité, 17, Bd Jourdan, 75 014 Paris
Salle : La Coupole
The masterclass will be mostly in English

Dramaturgies of Post-Democracy in Rimini Protokoll’s State 1-4

In their most recent production, the tetralogy State 1-4 (2016-18), Rimini Protokoll focus on post-democratic phenomena such as the global network of intelligence, construction sites and lobbyism, the digitalisation of democracy and the interweaving structures of global companies and politics. For each of these political subjects, they construct not only the special setting of an aesthetic space, but also a unique way of addressing, organising and guiding the audience through the theatre event. In this way, different strategies of participation and interaction generate an immersive experience.

This Masterclass will discuss different dramaturgies for staging the audience and try to relate this to different notions of the concept of post-democracy like those of Rancière, Crouch, Blühdorn and others.

Furthermore, the Masterclass will discuss the production aspects of this unique tetralogy, since four theatres teamed up with an exhibition institution, questioning the pros and cons of such a mega production. Finally, the session will position these productions in the wider oeuvre of Rimini Protokoll and its well-known shows that have travelled across Europe.

And – of course –  the Masterclass will provide an excellent opportunity to examine (and discuss) video documentation of the performances, excerpts of the working protocols and scripts, and images of research trips. There will also be time for questions.

Imanuel Schipper

Imanuel Schipper is a lecturer and researcher at a number of universities and art academies in Germany and Switzerland. He also works as a dramaturg for the well-known German Performance group, Rimini Protokoll, with whom, over many years, he has developed a contemporary genre of documentary theatre as intervention, as political think tank. Most recently, he has been the dramaturg for State 1-4, a tetralogy on post-democratic phenomena, commissioned by Haus der Kulturen der Welt (HKW) and four major theatres in Germany and Switzerland.

Imanuel Schipper works at the intersection between scientific research, teaching, and artistic practice. He strives to take terms deriving from Theatre Studies such as “theatricality“, “performativity“, “dramaturgy“, “staging“,  “reception“ and “mediality“, beyond the boundaries of the theatre, for example into design, urban design, scenography and curation.

He holds an associate professorship in Performance Studies and Dramaturgy at the Department of Arts & Social Change at the Hamburg Medical School (MSH), is on the board of directors for, Performance Studies international (PSi), and is finishing his PhD on „Relational Dramaturges” at Leuphana University Lüneburg.

Recent Publication: – Rimini Protokoll: Staat 1-4 (2018).

-Performing the Digital – Performativity and Performance Studies in Digital Cultures (2016).