Ariel Efraim Ashbel and friends

Rites of Spring I: PURIMSPIEL

Part of “Spirits, Jinns & Avatars”

10 years Ariel Efraim Ashbel and friends

  • Dialogue
  • Music
  • Performance
English /  approx. 120 mins.
A selfie of two people costumed as Ernie and Bert from Sesame Street. In the background is a framed picture of the originals.

Purim is the most performative holiday in the Jewish calendar; it celebrates the masquerade, inauthenticity, and the redemptive potential inherent in concealing one's “true” identity. In the Book of Esther, the text at the heart of the Purim ritual, deception is not always a sin. Disobedience, seduction, pride, sexual liberation, and prejudice all play a role in this story, as do bloodlust, revenge, and pettiness. Ariel Efraim Ashbel and friends invite audiences to CAN to learn about the traditions of the holiday, perform the Purim play, and add a contemporary twist with their performative language of playfully layering references and taking humor seriously. The evening will be a mix of exuberant cabaret gestures, discussions, readings, costumes, and drinks.

After “The Names /שמות”, “Rites of Spring I: PURIMSPIEL” is another production in the frame of the programme cycle to celebrate the tenth anniversary of Ariel Ashbel and friends. The year 2023 marks 10 years since Ariel Efraim Ashbel and friends first showed their work in Germany with “All white people look the same to me” – and this anniversary will be celebrated with several upcoming occasions at HAU, highlighting the potential of articulating contemporary performance through the lens of Jewish tradition.
 

This event can be combined with “Looking at Our Ancestors’ Secrets” by Danielle Brathwaite-Shirley at 19:00.

Cast

By and with: Ariel Efraim Ashbel, Katharina Joy Book, Ethan Braun, Jonas Maria Droste, Henrike Kohpeiß, Jessica Gadani, Henrike Kohpeiß, Liz Rosenfeld, Tamara Saphir, Tatiana Saphir, Sarah Thom, Joseph Wegmann / Production: Anna von Glasenapp (High Expectations) / Costumes: Tatiana Saphir

Dates

Past
Mon 6.3.2023, 20:00 / WAU

Further Information

Visitor note

This event is a costume party, so we cordially invite all visitors to attend in costume.

Credits

Production: Ariel Efraim Ashbel and friends. Co-production: HAU Hebbel am Ufer. Supported by: Fonds Darstellende Künste with funds from the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media within the framework of NEUSTART KULTUR.

Location

WAU
Hallesches Ufer 34, 10963 Berlin

Ground floor access. Barrier-free restroom facilities are available

HAU3000 / Positions, Projects, Publications

The Glowing Room

Text by Hendrik Otremba.

An Introduction to “Collectivize Facebook”

By Jonas Staal

“Collectivize Facebook” is a lawsuit aimed to turn Facebook into public property, initiated by artist Jonas Staal and lawyer Jan Fermon. Read here Staal’s introduction to the project.

“Manifestos for Queer Futures”

Video Documentation

As part of the festival “The Present Is Not Enough – Performing Queer Histories and Futures”, HAU initiated an open call for artists based in Berlin, who were invited to submit proposals for their Manifestos for Queer Futures.