How did you come to the field of dance education and what is your personal focus?
I studied dance in Dresden and came to Berlin in 2004, where I came into contact with hip-hop, urban dance and vogueing. For me, the hip-hop scene is a place of dialogue that is very accessible. Anyone can be there, regardless of age, background, appearance, or education level. You learn from each other through doing, you can enjoy the moment with the music, the energy, the people. For me, that has become an important balance to contemporary dance, which is often more concept-heavy, which of course can also be exciting. The hip-hop scene is not so hierarchical or dependent on institutions. We train in youth centres or outside, meet spontaneously in the park or in the club. But many very good hip-hop dancers don’t have formal dance education – it’s hard for them to apply or audition without a degree. Maybe I’m a kind of traveller between the scenes, I learn from both and try to mediate between them.
How did you experience your time with the Mobiler Tanzsaal?
Working with the refugees was instructive for me. You can’t go there and say, we’ll do whatever we want here, but you have to ask yourself, what do they need? What are they interested in, who do they already know, who do they trust? I always had to react very spontaneously and see what the people on site are like. Of course, it can’t be compared to a class in a dance school, and I don’t expect it to be. And of course we were on their turf – we were visiting them and behaved accordingly. Sometimes we also asked them if they could show us something from their culture, and then suddenly we were doing African dances or learning Syrian ones. And then you see how dance can really build bridges. When the kids were happy and asked me when I was coming back, that really touched me. I think if the project had lasted longer, the outcomes might have been more sustainable.
Where should dance education and outreach work in Berlin go, what do you think is important for the future?
In Berlin there are the well-known festivals for contemporary dance, but there is little that directly appeals to people who don’t come from the art scene. That’s when the classic questions arise: Is this dance or not? The Berlin style is more conceptual, which is okay. But then maybe you shouldn’t be surprised when artists make pieces for artists and everything stays in a bubble. But my feeling is that a lot is changing in the Berlin dance scene at the moment. There is an increased interest in actively engaging the broader public, in dialogue, and also in transparency. I would like to see a centre for dance in Berlin that functions as a gathering and contact point for everyone. A physical place that is accessible to everyone and where people who are connected with dance or want to know more about dance can go – a place for dialogue, networking and inspiration.