The district of Neukoelln houses more migrants than natives and is one of Berlinís trouble hotspots. For years, the social problems have been suppressed and concealed. However, the riots in the suburbs of Paris in 2005 have also drawn attention to troubled neighbourhoods in Berlin, such as Neukoelln.
Based on her experiences with the young dancers in the production “Scratch Neukoelln” at HAU1 Berlin in 2003, Constanza Macras offers the now teenagers of Neukoelln another stage in ìHell on Earth”. They tell from their live experiences, not from a childrenís perspective, but rather from a young adultís point of view: of hopes and troubles becoming adults. Of daily endured discrimination. Of the wish to adapt. Of the problems accompanying that wish.
Of particular interest is the development of a gender identity in this production, one of the main points in adolescence. It especially focuses on the evolvement of young women since they have to face more limits then their male counterparts. An additional theme is the interference of female and male concepts of the body and of gender. Thus, the question is: How do adolescent teenagers with an immigrant background cope with the multilayered and “Hell on Earth” therefore affords them room to thrive and present themselves ñ an option they are often deprived of.
HELL ON EARTH was awarded with the GOETHE-INSTITUT award for an outstanding production in 2008.
A production by CONSTANZA MACRAS | DorkyPark and HAU Berlin. In co-production with Kampnagel Hamburg. Supported by the Capital Cultural Fund and the Governing Mayor of Berlin – Department for Cultural Affairs.