I Was Better Until I Changed by Buğra Büyükşimşek & Bilgesu Akyürek

 I was better until I changed explores healing as a fragile state rather than a linear journey. Through shifting identities, masks, ritual, and intimacy, the performance questions whether healing offers relief or demands the loss of who we once were. As performers mourn former selves and move between resistance and adaptation, the boundary between repair and erasure dissolves. The work leaves the audience with an open question: what kind of loss do we accept when we choose to heal?

Buğra Büyükşimşek (b. 1998, Türkiye) is a Berlin-based choreographer, performer, and theatre director. Rooted in classical ballet, contemporary dance, and Butoh, his practice explores movement as a space of perception, transformation, and embodiment. Through queer and feminine perspectives, he creates immersive physical experiences that challenge conventional readings of the body. His works have been presented at festivals, museums, and theatres internationally.

Bilgesu Akyürek is a Berlin-based multidisciplinary dance artist and choreographer from Istanbul. Trained in classical ballet, she has developed a choreographic language that blends technical precision with physical risk. Her practice spans choreography, performance and visual composition, integrating acrobatic forms such as pole dance and hair suspension to challenge conventional perceptions. Her work has been presented across galleries, museums, festivals and performance spaces in Europe.