The verbal attacks of the AfD against the German theatre have received a new undertone. The party is now a case for the protection of the Constitution. Theatre-artistic Director Ulrich Khuon is concerned anyway.
The messages about the massive verbal attacks of the AfD against the German theatre and cultural scene sound disturbing: of the “culture war” is because the speech and of “violations of the German Leitkultur”, which must be punished. The cultural policy spokesman of the AfD in the Bundestag, Marc Jongen, even goes to the extent of the theaters to blame, you are filthy “the left” and reduced to “anti-fascist education institutions”.
Ulrich Khuon, Born 1951, is not only an experienced man of the theatre, but as a senior Director of the Deutsches theater in Berlin is also a cultural and political extremely vigilant. As Chairman of the German stage Association, he is networked across Europe in the cultural scene. He is committed to an “Open society”. We have asked him in the Interview, he evaluates the AfD-attacks.
DW: Mr Khuon, you are worried what is about to be fired from the right of the pages on the theatre and also on the German cultural scene in General?
Ulrich Khuon: Yeah, of course one is worried. And it also is not surprising, it is a consistent Action of the AfD, just from your own understanding of culture is out. How martial is pursued as aggressively, or as controversial, on the one hand consistently, but it is also unsettling. Therefore it is necessary to talk also about what’s happening right now.
You can say that the artistic freedom is at least called into question by the actions of the AfD, by certain motions and requests, and process-oriented approach. And the Public needs to know.
It remained in verbal attacks on the theatre in Germany, the AfD, or attacks the party as also to other methods?
We have here in Berlin at the Deutsches Theater, in a piece last summer in front of the house was played, a so-called “Intervention” and the Identity of the (right-wing extremist organization, note d. Red.) experienced – this is not now congruent with the AfD, but lives by the same spirit. And that was a violent interruption of the performance.
The piece was called “Scala Global”, and since it was this citizen of the world passport, so the question is: Are we not all citizens of the world? This is such a cultural and political utopia. And the Identitarian came with your nationalism glasses around the corner and have disrupted this idea massively. This was a violent Attack and by noise, by shouting, by in-Between. And this is more than a verbal interjection.
Venerable hotel with a long Tradition: the German theatre in Berlin
The AfD sits, in the meantime, parliaments in many countries, and as a selected group in the German Bundestag and with designed officially policy. It is because of the AfD-page cultural policy lever that could make the theatre institutions, sensitive?
Yes, of course, this is a classic approach, if you want to restrict artistic freedom. There’s also other States that have discovered nationalism again. Hungary, for example, Poland and Russia.
The works on the funds, so grants and subsidies. If you drive down or strokes, and is linked to a particular program track: So when you discussed the and the on the stage, then you will get money. Otherwise it is not.
For example, there was an AfD request to delete both at the Friedrichstadt-Palast as well as the Gorki-Theater and at the new German theatre, with larger sums of money. Curiously, probably because I had voiced as President of the German stage Association against the AfD, you have made the application, that the German theatre gets 500,000 euros less in subsidies.
The AfD describes the in their cultural-political program and even so: If you were in the government, then they would force the German theatre, to bring national substances. Now this, again, is absurd, because the Theater both with and without the AfD have materials from the past, from Goethe, Kleist, and Schiller, permanently on the stage.
Classics reloaded: “Woyzeck” by Georg Büchner in German theaters often on the game plan (image: 2014 in the Deutsches Theater, Berlin)
But I’m going to assume that the AfD would go even a step further. And that in these pieces, the beauty of the Nation, the connection of the Nation, this must be feeling for the German Nation visible on the stage. Today’s Interpretation of such historical materials would be dominated by the views of the AfD, and an attempt, like the theatre in Germany. In German history we know, of course, from the time of the national socialism.
Such developments and influences of the right side, there is currently, in the whole of Europe. Discuss with your culture and theatre colleagues in the other countries?
This cultural and political climate is created since years. Many theatres are in European Networks, in the “Mitos” (European theatre network, note d. Red.) or of the European theatre Convention, for example. And of course there is the permanent Meeting at the European level.
We have at the Deutsches Theater in Berlin, a Director who also works in Hungary, and as you can hear, of course, a lot of. Also, on another Instrument, such as the artist, the actor and the Director, EP: by operates simply right-oriented personnel policy and Directors who are too progressive or too liberal, or too open, just quits and throw us out. And other, which bring a national or even nationalistic culture to the front of the enthroned.
Want the Theater cut subsidies: Marc Jongen, cultural-political speaker of the AfD
So, the personnel policy and financial policy is, of course, is a lever that can be used to control an art scene or a theater scene so that it appears as an extended Arm of politics. Of course, people need to think about what cultural roots do we have? What do you mean “home” for us? This is out of the question. But I would say that the message of the AfD in terms of “national identity” have to take very seriously.
What is it that populist shock to find such words as “national cultural identity”, with which the AfD politician to operate, even in non-right groups of the population, so much resonance? What the party refers to as a mood?
Because every We-strengthens group feeling to the identity of the Individual. And, of course, everyone has the need to be a strong personality. And we all know that the succeed from an individual power alone. I feel also more comfortable as part of the German theatre, as part of the 30 people who work here. But it is not in demarcation to other, such as the AfD does, but as a strong group.
So, of course, can be – from the football Association to the concept of Home – a lot of tremendously invigorating. The danger is the battle cry, with the AfD as well in the battle, that is to say that it is used against others and that it is used for delineation.
They presented 2018, the “Declaration of the Many” in Berlin: representatives of 140 cultural institutions
Meanwhile, in Germany there is a concentration of about 500 cultural institutions under the name of “The Many” involved in efforts to combat the shift to the right and for a democratic and inclusive society. This is the creative response of the culture on the AfD-attacks?
This is from my point of view, the continuation of a movement which we have already for many years in the theatres, namely, the “Open society”. And now there’s just “Many”. You are – and that is how I interpret the – no fight Association against the AfD, but you are a consortium of artists and Intellectuals simply say: We see in the democracy that we have here in Germany, high quality, and we also show face and go free in case of doubt, also on the road – creative, cheerful, and violence.
The conversation Heike mouth.