Contributors

Christina Barandun

Christina Barandun has a degree in Theatre Studies and has been supporting cultural institutions since 2013 as a systemic organisational developer, coach trainer for managers. In addition, she works as an author (e.g. „First Aid for the Artist's Soul: Stress management, communication and conflict resolution in the cultural sector. A Guide” or „Dynamic Safe Spaces: Der geschützte Raum. Erfolgreiche Kommunikation in künstlerischen Ensembles und Kulturbetrieben“ both at Alexander Verlag).

 

 

 

Appreciative Communication: Fundamentals

Lea Bethke

Lea Bethke is a filmmaker and video artist. While still studying film at the Freie Universität Berlin, she learned her craft autodidactically. With her production team 99 Motions Production, founded in 2016, she worked in numerous productions with many renowned artists and institutions, often with a focus on dance. In 2018, she was accepted into the mentoring programme of the German Film and Television Academy Berlin (DFFB). She founded her own production company SinneFilm in 2020, with which she successfully realizes her own works, such as the award-winning dance film „Until the moon is born in the west" (2023) and the documentary „Cinegeek" (2023). On mostly socio-political topics and with an activist approach, the focus of her works is on body and movement, which creates meaning in the visual. 

 

Creating Dance Reels I – Fundamentals

Creating Dance Reels II – Video Editing

Sepide Freitag

Sepide Freitag is a lawyer and producer in Cologne (Germany) and Brussels (Belgium). She studied law in Cologne and Beijing (China) and completed her legal clerkship at the German Embassy in Tokyo (Japan) and the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development in Berlin (Germany), among others. She worked in legal departments and law firms in labour, media and copyright law and gained international lobbying experience in the international and human rights sector as a legal and political advisor in associations and NGOs in Brussels and Berlin. After her first state exam, she studied art history in Bonn (Germany) for several semesters and co-founded the agency for performing arts Danila-Freitag in Berlin, which she co-directed, as a producer in the field of dance and performance until 2023. As a member of the global producers' network PADA, she campaigns for better working conditions for producers and, as a lawyer, advises clients from the arts and creative scene in the areas of corporate law, contract law and copyright and media law. In addition to associations and cultural institutions, her clients also include producers and artists, for whom she regularly holds workshops on legal topics relevant to the scene.

 

German Copyright Law

Michael Freundt

Michael Freundt studied Theatre Studies, Philosophy and Dance Studies at the Theatre Academy Hans Otto and the University of Leipzig. He worked as a freelance journalist and critic, among others for zitty, Wochenpost, Theater der Zeit and Berliner Zeitung. He belonged to the directors' team of numerous independent theatre projects and worked for euro-scene Leipzig from 1997 till 2002. After his collaboration on productions in the genres of theatre, dance and ancient music, Michael Freundt became deputy managing director of Internationales Theater Institut (ITI) - Zentrum Deutschland at the beginning of 2003. Since 2004, Michael Freundt has been involved in the meetings of Ständige Konferenz Tanz (Continual Dance Conference), he coordinated its development into a registered association, and in March 2006 was named managing director of SK-Tanz, now called Dachverband Tanz Deutschland (German Dance Association).

 

 Dance Project Funding in Germany

Monica Gillette

Monica Gillette is a dance dramaturg and facilitator. After dancing professionally, she now shapes innovative projects with dance as a pathway for social engagement and multigenerational cultural exchange. As a dramaturg she accompanies several European funded projects, such as: Migrant Bodies - Moving Borders (2017-19), Empowering Dance (2018-23), Dancing Museums - The Democracy of Beings (2020-21), Dance Well (2022-25) and Moving Borders - Dance Approaches from the New Ukrainian Artistic Diaspora across Europe (2023-25). She works at Tanzhaus Zürich as part of the Dramaturgy Pool and as a transformation coach.

 

Soft Skills in Dance

Paul Hess

Paul Hess is a trained dancer and choreographer. He now also works as an actor and director at the Trier Theater. There he is deputy chairman of the staff council. He is active at the local, state, and national level in the Cooperative of German Stage Employees (Genossenschaft Deutscher Bühnen-Angehöriger - GDBA) and gives workshops on career entry and administration for performing artists.

 

Contracts I: Normalvertrag (NV) Bühne

Contracts II: Freelancing & Hybrid Employment

Sebastian Hoffmann

Sebastian Hoffmann coordinates the touring artists help desk service on the administrative regulations of cross-border work in the cultural sector (all disciplines). Studied North American Studies and Film Studies at FU Berlin and Reed College (USA) and has worked as an agent and promoter in the music sector as well as a consultant at Music Pool Berlin and the Smart Cooperative. 

 

Social Security in Germany

Prof. Dr. Sara Houston

Sara Houston is Professor of Dance and Community Engagement at University of Roehampton, London (UK). She is an international researcher, consultant, teacher, and speaker specialising in socially engaged dance practices. Her research in dance and Parkinson’s won the BUPA Foundation Prize in 2011 and she was finalist in 2014 the UK National Public Engagement Awards for communicating her research to the general public. She is the author of „Dancing with Parkinson’s” (Intellect Books, 2019) and was a partner within the Empowering Dance project (2020 - 23). She is currently a research consultant for Dance Well Hong Kong and Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts.

 

Soft Skills in Dance

Benjamin Joon

Benjamin Joon is an integral teacher, who accompanies his students to discover their true nature through meditation, lecture, play and practice. Benjamin believes that authenticity empowers our capability to face the challenges of our time with peace and joy in our hearts. His main influences are the mindfulness training of Thich Nhat Hanh (buddhist psychology, meditation, and philosophy), chakra psychology and movement research (Jiu-Jitsu, Fighting Monkey, Contact Improvisation). He offers training for professionals and private people and is regularly invited as a teacher at festivals for Yoga, Spirituality, Mindfulness, Meditation and Contemporary Dance in Germany and South Korea.

 

Resilience in Uncertain Times

Waltraut Körver

Waltraut Körver grew up in Essen (Germany), where she studied dance at the Folkwang University until her Diploma. She studied theatre studies, modern German literature, and ethnology at the LMU University in Munich (Germany). Additional internships and choreographic assistantships took her to Steirischer Herbst (Austria), Australia, New York (USA), and Senegal. Her first permanent engagement was as a dramaturge at the municipal theatre in Münster under Birgitta Trommler, before she joined Susanne Linke and Urs Dietrich at the Tanztheater in Bremen 1994.

As a freelance dramaturge, she worked for Gregor Zöllig, Yossi Berg, Rami Levi and others, and was head of the dance department for children and young people at Tanzplan Bremen from 2005-2010. In 2010, she began archiving the life's work of choreographer Susanne Linke on behalf of the Akademie der Künste (Academy of the Arts) Berlin and worked from 2015-19 as company manager and dance dramaturge at the Theater Trier under the artistic direction of Susanne Linke and subsequently of Roberto Scafati. She has been working in these roles at Theater Hagen since autumn 2019 and collaborates with numerous choreographers, including Kevin O'Day, Urs Dietrich, Anna Konjetzky and currently with head choreographer Francesco Nappa. Since 2019 she has also been in charge of the collective i Move HA.

 

Insights into the German Repertoire Theatre System

Susan McDonald

Born in New Zealand, Susan graduated in 1988 from the Victorian College of the Arts in Melbourne (Australia), with a Bachelor of Arts in Dance. After various project contracts in Australia and New Zealand, Susan travelled to London (UK) and danced with the Vienna Festival Ballet. In 1993, she joined the Nordharzer Städtebundtheater in Halberstadt, Germany, where she later started working with the choreographer, Tarek Assam. Between 2001 and 2010, Susan danced and worked as an assistant for the Tanzcompagnie Giessen, under the direction of Tarek Assam. During this period, she also founded the TanzArt Festival Ost/West with Tarek Assam. In 2012, Susan moved to Bielefeld (Germany), and began working as the dance assistant of the Stadttheater Bielefeld, under the direction of Gregor Zöllig. Since 2015, Susan has been part of the dance direction team with Gregor Zöllig of the Tanztheater Braunschweig, Staatstheater Braunschweig, as rehearsal and trainings director. She is also responsible for the dance scheduling. Since August 2022, Susan is now the deputy director representative of Gregor Zöllig for the Tanztheater Braunschweig.

 

Successfully Applying as Dancer

Dr. Dora Meyer

Dr. Dora Meyer is the nutritionist at the Ballet  Academy of the University of Music and Performing Arts Munich and a postdoctoral researcher at the Institute for Nutritional Medicine, Technical University in Munich (Germany). She holds an MSc. in public health, an MSc. in Nutrition and Biomedicine, and a Ph.D. in Nutrition. She teaches nutrition workshops and cooking classes at both universities and offers consultation services to develop personalized nutrition plans.

 

Nutrition for Dancers

Luca Ponti

Luca Ponti is a trained dancer and stage manager at Theater Krefeld and Mönchengladbach (Germany). There he is also a committed member of the company work council. At Cooperative of German Stage Employees (Genossenschaft Deutscher Bühnen-Angehöriger - GDBA), Luca is the chairman of the dance board.

 

Contracts I: Normalvertrag (NV) Bühne

Contracts II: Freelancing & Hybrid Employment

Isabelle Schramm

Isabelle Schramm was born in Hamburg (Germany) and started her dance education at the Ballet School Hamburg Ballet John Neumeier. She graduated in 2009 at the Palucca University for Dance  in Dresden (Germany) and got the chance to find immediately a contract in Switzerland at the Geneva Ballet, where she stayed for four years. Desiring to be a greater part of the creative process, she went freelancing back in Germany (Dresden and Leipzig) and in Switzerland. This period gave her the opportunity to enjoy more flexibility in her schedule. She decided to start her Bachelor at the Fernuniversity Hagen and got her master’s degree in 2021 at the University in Geneva (Switzerland). Her goal is to now link her two professions and she opened her private practice for dancers, athletes and artists in Geneva. She has also been given the opportunity to work with different dance companies and schools, for example with the dancers of the Ballet Theatre Basel.

 

Self-Confidence & Self-Esteem in Dance

Int. Prof. Isaac Spencer

Isaac Spencer is currently associate professor for ballet techniques in the BA dance department at the Frankfurt University of Music and Performing Arts (HfMDK Frankfurt am Main). He co-authored the publication „Mentorship Toolbox” following the three part “Think Tank on Mentorship” initiated by SITE in Stockholm and MARC in Skåne (Sweden) in 2018-19. The Apprenticeship Toolbox was supported by the “Gesellschaft der Freunde und Förderer der HfMDK” and is currently in use by the 4th year BA dance students.

 

Apprenticeship Toolbox for Artists

Felix Sodemann

Felix Sodemann coordinates the projects touring artists and the Theaterpreis des Bundes at the International Theatre Institute – Zentrum Deutschland (ITI). Raised in the German Rhine Area, he landed in Berlin after living in Tübingen and Turkey and studying German and Literature. In addition to his work at the ITI, he is active as a freelance theatre and film maker and translator.

 

Taxes in Germany

Natalie Wagner

Natalie Wagner has been working internationally as a choreographer for over 20 years, creating short pieces as well as full-length dance productions both in the independent scene and at various theatres. Born in Switzerland with Brazilian roots, she graduated from the Zurich University of the Arts with a Master in Dance Education (2011) and from the Palucca University of Dance in Dresden (Germany) with a Master of Arts in Choreography (2020). She was then awarded a two-year, full-time scholarship from the Saxon State Scholarship for Graduate and Master Students and focused her research on professional identity in dance. Her most recent pieces have been invited to Festspielhaus Hellerau, Network Internazionale Danza Puglia and Solo Contemporary Dance Festival in Ankara (Turkey), among others. Since the 2022/23 season, she is the artistic director of the dance company and chief choreographer of the Landesbühnen Sachsen.

 

Being a Dance Artist Nowadays

Dr. Isa Wortelkamp

In her work as a systemic coach, Isa Wortelkamp uses her expertise in Dance Studies to accompany change and development processes. Movement is the symbol for change and requires a „moving gaze”, which she has trained, knows how to convey, and use in her many years of research on dance. Isa Wortelkamp was Junior Professor of Dance Studies at Freie Universität Berlin from 2008 to 2015 and led various research projects on the medial transmission of movement in writing, writing and photography. She currently researches and teaches at the Institute for Theatre Studies at the University of Leipzig (Germany).

 

Vision Works: Career Coaching for Dance Artists