MAM. manufaktur für aktuelle musik
Hang Su: THE BODY MEMORY (UA)
THE BODY MEMORY is the second collaboration of MAM. manufaktur für aktuelle musik with Chinese-German composer and visual artist Hang Su. It brings back to life the Berlin of the Eighties, crossfading it with rituals that lead to historic China. The piece is centered on Jürgen Baldiga, photographer of West Berlin’s queer subculture, and author Ronald M. Schernikau, the last person ever to emigrate from the West to the other side of the iron curtain. Both died of the effects of their HIV infection. Unpublished material from their archives provides the basis for this time travel which unites elements from text, performance and concert to form a theatre rich in pictures and allusions. Linked to the composer’s own memories of these years are his feelings of being an artist lost between two cultures. This is where the legend of Hu Tianbao enters Berlin – having been executed because he loved men, Chinese underworld officials transfered him into the body of a rabbit, elevating him to be the patron saint of homosexuals.
Concept, Composition, Stage Direction, Stage: Hang Su | Text: Daniel Schmidt, Hang Su
With: Paul Hübner, Trumpet | Richard Haynes, Clarinet | Sabrina Ma, Percussion | Ludwig Obst, Voice | Hang Su, Qin
Location: Ballhaus Ost, Pappelallee 15
Duration: ca. 60 Minuten
Performances:
So 29.9., 16:30 Uhr
So 29.9., 19:00 Uhr
A production of MAM.manufaktur für aktuelle Musik. Supported by Initiative Neue Musik Berlin e. V. and Musikfonds e. V. aus Mitteln der Beauftragten der Bundesregierung für Kultur und Medien. Many thanks for the support to the Schwule Museum Berlin, Aron Neubert, Thomas Keck and Ellen Schernikau.