ZEIT FÜR ZIRKUS | UNANiM KOLLEKTIV | Lower Level @Elogiusplatz, Heumarkt, Köln

In the organizer's words:

@STAIRCASE ENTRANCE - ELOGIUSPLATZ - OF THE HEUMARKT SUBWAY STATION

_{"LOWER LEVEL" IS A SITE-SPECIFIC PERFORMANCE IN THE INTERMEDIATE LEVEL OF A SUBWAY STATION.}

_{IT IS DEDICATED TO THE QUESTION OF COLLECTIVITY AND SOLIDARY CARE AND INVITES THE AUDIENCE TO ENGAGE IN A WALK AND CHANGE OF PERSPECTIVE. ACCOMPANIED BY THE PERFORMERS WITH CONTEMPORARY DANCE AND ACROBATICS, THE DIVERSE FACETS OF OUR SOCIAL ACTION ARE ILLUMINATED. WHAT ROLE DO TRANSIT AND UNDERGROUND MEETING PLACES PLAY IN OUR EVERYDAY LIVES? WHY IS SO MUCH INDIVIDUAL DISTANCE EXPERIENCED IN PLACES OF SPATIAL PROXIMITY? IN THE UNDERGROUND, BETWEEN PEDESTRIAN ZONE AND SUBWAY TRAFFIC, A LABORATORY WITH AN ATMOSPHERE OF OPENNESS IS CREATED IN WHICH DIFFERENT VOICES AND EXPERIENCES FIND A PLACE. NOT ONLY THE VISIBLE STRUCTURES OF THE UNDERGROUND ARE EXPLORED, BUT ALSO THE METAPHORICAL DEPTHS OF OUR SOCIETY AND INDIVIDUAL RELATIONSHIPS. "LOWER LEVEL" IS AN EXPERIMENT THAT EXPLORES THE POSSIBILITIES OF TOGETHERNESS AND SOLIDARITY. WHICH BOUNDARIES INFLUENCE OUR LIVES, WHICH BOUNDARIES DO WE INFLUENCE? IT INVITES US TO TAKE NEW PATHS TOGETHER AND EXPLORE WHAT IT MEANS TO LIVE IN A WORLD OF DIVERSITY, CHANGE AND CONSTANT ACCELERATION.}

_{THE COLLECTIVE}

_{THE 2018 BY MIRKO KREJCI, NATALIE RISSE, JAN WILLIMSKY, LIORA EPPSTEIN, HAGEN KELLER, MARCEL HÖSL, JOKE JESINGHAUS, GERNOT HOFFMANN, LUCIA NORDHOFF, LUKAS SCHÜTTE AND ROMI OKEWU FOUNDED COLLECTIVE UNANiM CONSISTS OF CONTEMPORARY CIRCUS AND DANCE PERFORMERS:AND IS INTERESTED IN THE TRANSDISCIPLINARY EXPLORATION OF CONTEMPORARY DANCE AND ACROBATICS. AFTER THE PERFORMATIVE INTERVENTION IN THE URBAN SPACE WAS IN THE FOCUS OF UNANiM AT THE BEGINNING, THE PERFORMANCE OF THE PIECE "VORSPRUNG" FOLLOWED IN THE FRAMEWORK OF THE ZAIK RESIDENCY (2019) IN THE QUARTIER AM HAFEN IN COLOGNE. AFTER ANOTHER RESIDENCY AT THE BARNES CROSSING STUDIO OF THE KUNSTZENTRUM WACHSFABRIK IN COLOGNE RODENKIRCHEN, THE COLLECTIVE PRESENTED ITS SECOND STAGE PLAY
"DER SPRINGENDE PUNKT" (2019). THE INTENSIVE JOINT WORK AND THE RESULTING INTEREST IN PROFESSIONALIZATION IN THE PERFORMING ARTS LED TO A LARGE PART OF THE GROUP LEAVING COLOGNE TO STUDY CONTEMPORARY DANCE, CHOREOGRAPHY, THEATER PEDAGOGY AND ARTISTRY. after several years of individual study and work at home and abroad, the last members of the group found their way back to cologne in 2023. in the spring of 2024, unaniM resumed its collective artistic work.}

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_{"LOWER LEVEL" IS A SITE-SPECIFIC PERFORMANCE IN THE INTERMEDIATE LEVEL OF A SUBWAY STATION.}

_{IT EXPLORES THE QUESTIONS OF COLLECTIVITY AND SOLIDARISTIC CARE AND INVITES THE AUDIENCE TO ENGAGE ON A WALK AND PERSPECTIVE SHIFT. ACCOMPANIED BY THE PERFORMERS WITH CONTEMPORARY DANCE AND ACROBATICS, THE PERFORMANCE ILLUMINATES THE VARIED ASPECTS OF OUR SOCIAL INTERACTIONS. WHAT ROLE DO TRANSIT AND UNDERGROUND MEETING PLACES PLAY IN OUR DAILY LIVES? WHY DO WE EXPERIENCE SO MUCH INDIVIDUAL DISTANCE IN PLACES OF PHYSICAL PROXIMITY? IN THE INTERIM SPACE, BETWEEN THE PEDESTRIAN ZONE AND THE SUBWAY TRAFFIC, A LABORATORY WITH AN ATMOSPHERE OF OPENNESS IS CREATED, WHERE DIFFERENT VOICES AND EXPERIENCES FIND A PLACE. THIS NOT ONLY EXPLORES THE VISIBLE STRUCTURES OF THE UNDERGROUND BUT ALSO THE METAPHORICAL DEPTHS OF OUR SOCIETY AND INDIVIDUAL RELATIONSHIPS. "LOWER LEVEL" IS AN EXPERIMENT THAT EXPLORES THE POSSIBILITIES OF TOGETHERNESS AND SOLIDARITY. WHICH BOUNDARIES AFFECT OUR LIVES, AND WHICH BOUNDARIES DO WE AFFECT? IT INVITES PARTICIPANTS TO EMBARK ON NEW PATHS TOGETHER AND TO EXPLORE WHAT IT MEANS TO LIVE IN A WORLD OF DIVERSITY, CHANGE, AND CONSTANT ACCELERATION}

_{THE COLLECTIVE}

_{THE COLLECTIVE UNANIM, FOUNDED IN 2018 BY MIRKO KREJCI, NATALIE RISSE, JAN WILLIMSKY, LIORA EPPSTEIN, HAGEN KELLER, MARCEL HÖSL, JOKE JESINGHAUS, GERNOT HOFFMANN, LUCIA NORDHOFF, LUKAS SCHÜTTE AND ROMI OKEWU, CONSISTS OF CONTEMPORARY CIRCUS AND DANCE ARTISTS WHO ARE INTERESTED IN AN INTERDISCIPLINARY ENGAGEMENT WITH CONTEMPORARY DANCE AND ACROBATICS. INITIALLY FOCUSING ON PERFORMANCE INTERVENTIONS IN URBAN SPACES, UNANIM'S FIRST MAJOR PERFORMANCE WAS 'VORSPRUNG', PRESENTED AS PART OF THE ZAIK RESIDENCY (2019) AT THE QUARTIER AM HAFEN IN COLOGNE. AFTER ANOTHER RESIDENCY AT THE BARNES CROSSING STUDIO AT KUNSTZENTRUM WACHSFABRIK IN COLOGNE-RODENKIRCHEN, THE COLLECTIVE PRESENTED THEIR SECOND STAGE PIECE, 'DER SPRINGENDE PUNKT' (2019). THE INTENSE COLLABORATIVE WORK AND THE RESULTING INTEREST IN PROFESSIONALIZING THE PERFORMING ARTS LED MANY MEMBERS OF THE GROUP TO LEAVE COLOGNE TO STUDY CONTEMPORARY DANCE, CHOREOGRAPHY, THEATRE PEDAGOGY AND ACROBATICS. AFTER SEVERAL YEARS OF INDIVIDUAL STUDY AND WORK AT HOME AND ABROAD, THE REMAINING MEMBERS OF THE GROUP FOUND THEIR WAY BACK TO COLOGNE IN 2023. IN SPRING 2024, UNANIM RESUMED THEIR COLLECTIVE ARTISTIC WORK.}