photos: Frank R. Schröder.
With “Goodbye, Berlin!”, iconic theater maker Constanza Macras and her company Dorkypark premiered their latest production at Volksbühne a few weeks ago. Following in the footsteps of last year’s The Hunger, the piece takes contemporary issues and creates relations to a literary source – in this case, Christopher Isherwood’s beloved novel “Goodbye Berlin”. For us, this is a match made in heaven.
More or less unintentionally, the choice of the novel and its title became an alarming prospect when news broke in October that Macra’s collaboration with the Volksbühne am Rosa-Luxemburg-Platz, her stage of the past couple of years, will not be extended beyond the current theater season. This means, “Goodbye, Berlin!” will potentially be the last Dorkypark production in Berlin, as many fans fear.
During a panel talk with Macras at the recent book launch event of her company’s retrospective “Memory is Fragile”, she spoke about how important it is for a theater company’s longevity to have a permanent theater stage. One of the many advantages is the fact that it enables the company to offer long-term contracts to its ensemble, which is something very rare in the dance world. It’s also great for theater makers to develop deeper working relations with the stage and theater crew – something that will deeply improve the working atmosphere and also the quality of the work.
In the talk, Macras reveals that the time between Schaubühne and Volksbühne, when she didn’t have a permanent stage, was the toughest period for the company. I absolutely believe that, but from the perspective of an audience member, this period was also somewhat exciting. I remember seeing Dorkypark pieces in a forest, an old industrial space, and various theaters in town I hadn’t been to before. It was really adventurous, which felt quite suitable for the company. When I flick through the book, seeing photos of all the productions, it really brings back so many good memories.
If “Goodbye, Berlin!” turns out to be a farewell to Berlin, which I hope it’s not, it’s definitely an impactful one. There have been many theater productions that chose Berlin as their main subject, but only a few really became iconic, and I think this one can be one of them. Of course, chosing Isherwood’s famous novel already paves the way to something great. But unlike in last year’s The Hunger the source material is actually not as prominent in the show. Instead, we get modern-day hot topics paired with similar historical references making us realise that every notion you could have ever had about Berlin has been had by others many times before.
The idea of “Berlin being over” or “not what it used to be” has been resurfacing every other decade. It’s almost like ebb and tide, it comes and goes – just in different colors and with different details. The same goes for the rise of fascism – many might not realize it or don’t want to face it – but all the signs are there, today!, an uncomfortable observation that the piece puts a spotlight.
I particularly enjoyed the monologue about Berlin’s party scene and heavy drug use and depression as one of its many side effects. Even though this was given by a female ensemble member, the inspiration must have come from a gay man – because, boy, have I heard and witnessed this story before…
Another stand-out for me was the bloody solo performance by new ensemble member Steph Quinci that really gave me goosebumps. The grace, the charisma, the talent – unmatched. She is that girl, there’s no other way to say it.
Perhaps the biggest surprise of the show – and maybe this is the right place to give a SPOILER WARNING if you want to experience the surprise yourself (STOP READING HERE THEN!) – is the mass pole performance. Pole was introduced to Dorkypark by performer Chloe Chua during The Hunger last year. For this year, Chloe taught the entire ensemble to dance on the pole – and so they did. It was such a gaggy moment when all the performers came out in groups using three poles spread over the stage.
I think this is one of the fascinating qualities of Dorkypark, no matter with what you came into the company, you will be doing something more on stage. You came as a musician? You will be dancing, too. You came as a dancer? You will get lines. You came as an actor? You will be studying complex group choreographies. You came as an aerial artist? You will be slapped around on stage in a leather harness. I’m guessing it’s as much of a surprise as it is for the audience what everyone will end up doing on stage.
“Goodbye, Berlin!” has been met with excited responses, sold-out shows, and eager anticipation by fans of what the future holds for Dorkypark. Go see the show if you haven’t seen it. Also, catch The Hunger one last time this year on Nov 28. And check out the new book “Memory is Fragile” that captures the fantastic 22 years of Macras and Dorkypark.
Goodbye, Berlin!
Nov 29, Dec 13 & 23, Jan 3 – 19:30h
Volksbühne Am Rosa-Luxemburg-Platz
