In September, the intensive theatre workshop “Voice Message from the War” presented by the Düsseldrama theatre ensemble and led by director and TheColu.mn contributor Marvin Wittiber will take place at the Düsseldorf Youth House.
The free offering is aimed at queer youths and young adults aged 16 to 27 with Ukrainian ties. No prior experience is required. The program is seeking participants who are excited to work with theatre, text, voice, sound, and their own memories.
The project centers on the experiences of young queer life in and from Ukraine during Russia’s invasion. For the research, Düsseldrama’s team traveled to Lviv and Kyiv in July and conducted interviews with young queer Ukrainians as well as with LGBT and feminist organizations on the ground. These voices will now meet in Düsseldorf with the experiences of young queer people connected to Ukraine.
“A voice message feels intimate, even when the sender is far away. It carries breath, pauses, fatigue, humor, fear, and tenderness,” the announcement states. “What does a voice from afar reveal? Which sounds belong to a daily life that continues despite the war? And what happens when listening turns into an answer?”
Together with the artistic team, the participants will develop scenes, sounds, and texts from interviews, their own writings, voice messages, noises, and memories to create a documentary audio-performance in German and Ukrainian.
The intensive theatre workshop will take place on Saturday, September 19 and Sunday, September 20, 2026, each from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., as well as on Friday, September 25 from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. and Saturday, September 26 from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., at the Düsseldorf Youth House. Finally, public closing performances will be shown on Saturday, September 26 at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, September 27 at 6 p.m.
Participation is free. Participants must be able to attend all workshop dates and both final presentations. The workshop will be conducted in German and Ukrainian. Registration is open until September 9, 2026 via the registration form on the Düsseldorf Youth Ring’s website. Questions can be answered by Marvin Wittiber via email at [address not provided].
