Lesung und Gespräch mit Anja Kampmann und Dr. Pablo Schneider

Hamburg in the early 1930s: The Reeperbahn is bustling, and variety shows and theaters draw crowds night after night. But the political climate is increasingly changing life in the city.

On August 27, Hamburg-based author Anja Kampmann will be a guest at PARABEL. She will read from her multi-award-winning novel *Die Wut ist ein heller Stern* (Anger Is a Bright Star).

The story centers on Hedda, who has fought to make her dream come true and performs as an artist at the Alkazar on the Reeperbahn. But the new uniforms are appearing more and more frequently in the audience, the space for freedom is shrinking, and life is becoming increasingly dangerous even for the women in the variety show. While her brother Jaan sets course for Antarctica as a harpoon smith on a whaling ship, Hedda searches for a way out for herself and her little brother Pauli. Anja Kampmann tells a story of female self-assertion in a male-dominated era.

The reading takes place as part of the exhibition “A Pleasure That Seems Tragic …—Rolf Nesch and Hamburg.” Rolf Nesch also experienced Hamburg during these years and made the city, the harbor, St. Pauli, and its people the subjects of his art. Kampmann’s novel and Nesch’s works thus offer different perspectives on Hamburg during a time of profound social and political change.

Following the reading, Anja Kampmann will speak with art historian and co-curator of the exhibition Dr. Pablo Schneider about the novel’s creation, its historical context, and Hamburg as a setting for art and literature.

Anja Kampmann, born in Hamburg in 1983, is one of the most prominent authors in contemporary German-language literature. Her work has received numerous awards. She received the Hans Fallada Prize for *Die Wut ist ein heller Stern*; the novel was also nominated for the Leipzig Book Fair Prize.

Thursday, August 27, 2026
Start: 6:00 p.m.

PARABEL – Center for Art in Hamburg

Admission: 10 euros
Students: Free admission

Please register atinfo@parabel.hamburg. Remaining tickets, if available, can be purchased at the Box Office.

Please note: Due to the architectural layout of the former church building, PARABEL is unfortunately not wheelchair accessible.