double bill:: In Between / Underneath climate cracks

Mai Júli Machado / Michael Gagawala Kaddu

Michael Gagawala Kaddu

Mai Júli Machado: In Between

The piece explores gestures of care and protection, tracing movements that reveal the tensions between vulnerability, security, freedom and coercion. It sheds light on the experiences of women at different stages of life and reflects on their processes of physical, psychological and spiritual transformation, as well as the challenges they face in socio-political contexts, which are often shaped by prescribed norms.

The significance of this work lies in its ability to evoke memories of the transition from childhood to adulthood and to denounce the socio-cultural constraints that limit the freedom of women whose ideas and experiences do not conform to established norms.

 

This work emerged from personal reflections on care, protection and the female life cycle, and was developed with the support of the ‘Immersion’ programme run by Compagnie Mathilde Monnier and the ‘pair’ programme (a programme for international artists); it has already been presented at the Kinani Festival in Mozambique and the Constellation Festival in France.

 

Michael Gagawala Kaddu: Underneath climate cracks

My mother, Esther Meeme Nalubanda, comes from a long line of rainmakers. I remember

her performing rituals to stop or summon the rain when I was little. As I grew older, she lost

faith in these rituals and stopped practicing them. When she stopped, my childhood ended.

 

This interdisciplinary performance explores the vital role of rituals in relation to humans

and the environment. As the tradition of rainmaking and other traditional customs slowly

disappear across Africa, a wealth of ecological knowledge risks disappearing with them.

This piece taps into that deep, generational understanding of nature's systems expressed

through a rich tapestry of dances, songs, and rituals to question how we can use

embodied knowledge to foster a more mindful, urgent connection with our environment today.

Next date:

• Date Saturday, 03/October/2026 19:30 ( 1 more date )
• Venue Dock 11 - Dock Art Theater
• Address Kastanienallee 79, 10435 Berlin-Prenzlauer Berg