GIRL, SHOW ME THAT BODY (OF WORK): FLINTA LITERATURNACHT #2

"Girl, Show Me That Body (of Work)" is a literature and performance project that focuses on FLINTA* authors with a migrant background in Berlin. It promotes inclusion and diversity in literature and makes marginalized voices visible. Through readings, literary performances and discussions at the Lettrétage, the project promotes dialog about identity, migration and gender equality. In collaboration with organizations that reach out to underrepresented communities, it uses literature as a tool for socio-political activism, cultural exchange and community building with new audiences.

This is the second event in this year's four-part series bringing together migrant women writers working in literature, film, conceptual art and FLINTA activism in Berlin and internationally. The focus is on authors who were born in Germany or moved to Germany before 1989. Thematically, the event is dedicated to emotional inheritance and transgenerational trauma.

Almost half of the international migrants are women who are confronted with challenges such as fear of deportation and custody issues. Issues of gender equality, parentification and reinventing the parental role, as well as the challenges of dealing with transgenerational trauma, are at the forefront. How does literature create new forms of expression in the adoptive language of German to heal these traumas? How can we build a community in a new country? How do we reconcile our past with our future? How can we use literature as a tool of resistance and empowerment for women and non-binary people?

Featuring authors Maria Bidian, Jacinta Nandi, Mara Genschel and A. A. Winterfeld , the event explores how literature can be a medium for healing, resistance and empowerment. By amplifying these voices, the event aims to foster connections with women and non-binary individuals supported by Berlin-based aid organizations and create a space for dialogue, solidarity and healing.

Join us for an evening of powerful storytelling, critical reflection and collaborative encounters.

FLINTA* Literature is an initiative dedicated to promoting inclusion, diversity and equal participation in literature and culture. By spotlighting the voices of FLINTA* authors - women, lesbians, intersex, non-binary, trans and agender people - with migrant backgrounds and embodied disadvantages, FLINTA Literature challenges societal narratives and promotes social cohesion through storytelling. Our projects amplify marginalized voices that are often excluded from public discourse and use literature as a powerful tool for socio-political activism, cultural exchange and community engagement. We create safe spaces for dialogues about identity, migration, gender equity and lived experiences of discrimination and resilience.

"Girl, Show Me That Body (of Work)" is the flagship program of FLINTA* Literature. It is a literature and performance series that focuses on FLINTA* authors with a migration background in Berlin. Through readings, literary performances and discussions at the Lettrétage, the programme amplifies marginalized voices and promotes dialogue about identity, migration and gender equality. The series creates inclusive spaces for artistic expression and community engagement, challenges social norms and celebrates diverse narratives. It uses literature as a medium for socio-political activism, cultural exchange and audience participation, building bridges between different social groups.

Ioana Cristina Casapu (she/they) is a Romanian author and artist living in Germany. Her works - from novels to short prose and poetry to intersectional conceptual interventions - explore the sexual politics of migration, social ruptures and loneliness. In 2024, Ioana founded "Girl, Show Me That Body (of Work)" as part of FLINTA* Literature. Girl, Show Me That Body (of Work) is funded by the Berlin Senate Department for Culture and Social Cohesion in 2025.

Magda Birkmann loves to share her enthusiasm for literature, first as a bookseller at the Berlin bookstore Ocelot for seven years and more recently as the person responsible for press and public relations at the Berlin Literaturhaus Lettrétage and as a freelance literary mediator and moderator. Together with Nicole Seifert, she publishes the book series rororo Entdeckungen with novels by neglected female authors of the 20th century for Rowohlt Verlag. In 2024, she was a member of the jury for the German Book Prize. Magda Birkmann will moderate the second FLINTA* Literature Night.

As a writer and performer,Mara Genschel works on a concept of literature that encompasses more than just the classic "book". The performativity of her texts unfolds both in special publication concepts and in conscious encounters with the audience. In addition to many other publications and interdisciplinary works, the radio play Utopische Dialoge (SWR2) and Midlife-Prosa (Engeler Verlag) appeared in 2024. In 2024 she gave the Hildesheim Poetics Lecture. Since the winter semester 24/25 she has been teaching and researching as an artistic-scientific assistant at the Academy of Media Arts Cologne. Books including "Cute Gedanken" (2017), "Gablenberger Tagblatt" (2018), videos including "Das narzisstische Publikum" (2021), radio play including "How to Celebrate a Meister" (2021), music theater: "21 Songs in a Public Surrounding" (with Hannes Seidl, 2023).

Maria Bidian works as a writer and video editor in front of and behind the camera. She studied literary writing and editing in Hildesheim and literature and philosophy in Mainz. Maria lives in Berlin and a small village in Romania, where she is renovating an old farmhouse with her family. "The Peacock Painting" (2024) is her first novel.

Jacinta Nandi has lived in Berlin since 2000, is a single mother of two sons and an embittered, angry but sometimes funny feminist. In 2023 she took part in the Bachmann competition, in 2024 her last book 50 Ways to Leave your Ehemann, published by Nautilus, was developed into a play for Theater Paderborn. Her next book will be published in June 2025: Single Mom Supper Club

A.A. Winterfeld is a Berlin writer and artist. Born in East Berlin shortly before the fall of the Berlin Wall, she spent 15 years abroad but always returns to Berlin. She writes about transgenerational trauma and neurodiversity, and questions entrenched role models.

"Girl, Show Me That Body (of Work)" is a project by Ioana Casapu in cooperation with Lettrétage. Funded by the Senate Department for Culture and Social Cohesion. Supported by the Romanian Cultural Institute Berlin. Presented by taz. Recommended by The Reader Berlin.