Dear festival audience,

Welcome to SCHÖNE AUSSICHT 2024, welcome to a week full of theatre, exciting encounters and conversations!

One and a half years ago, the curation process for the international guest performance programme began with an open call. We asked: HOW DO YOU HANDLE UNCERTAINTY? A question that we are constantly confronted with in a rapidly and unpredictably evolving world and that we hope will inspire and empower us – not only in our artistic work, but also in dealing with social, economic and political challenges. We therefore set out in search of productions that deal with uncertainty in terms of content, form or working methods. Over 200 applications were submitted, which enabled us as the curatorial team to put together a diverse festival program of productions that we see as possible responses, reactions or attitudes towards uncertainty.

In the ten selected productions, we experience uncertainty in a first encounter, in emerging and breaking relationships, in worries about the future, in the finiteness of life. Sometimes it is about plugging a dripping leak in the ceiling, sometimes about not getting lost between truth and lies. Some ask how we can hold, support and carry each other. Others simply ask: what do YOU need?

Further information about the festival and opportunities to interact can be found in our menu under ENCOUNTERS.

Many thanks to the City of Stuttgart and the Baden-Württemberg Ministry of Science, Research and the Arts for their funding and to all other supporters. A big thank you to Em Ball, Irma Unušić and Petra Jeroma for the inspiring, hard and careful discussions during the curation process. And last but not least a huge thank you to the fantastic team at the festival office: Marie Herholz, Petra Jeroma, Timnit Meseret and Martha Schmalz – this all wouldn’t have been possible without you.

Here’s to a great week!

Your festival directors: Grete Pagan and Frederic Lilje