Joy as an act of resistance

Dear visitors to the Gessnerallee, dear culture enthusiasts, dear artists

We are emerging from the November maelstrom with Porny Days, the Backslash Festival, the Kitchen Battle Zurich, the JAZZNOJAZZ Festival, the DIVAS showing, the Dawuna concert and the sound installation by Dimitri de Perrot. We look back on a wild, exciting and wonderful time. And we are looking forward to the upcoming programme in December full of drag, sexiness, joy and a unique opportunity for further education.

From tomorrow on, we will be showing Alexandra Bachzetsis' work ‘Exposure’, which was created in collaboration with the Swedish dance company Cullberg. ‘Exposure’ explores strategies for depicting the naked body in art, film, fashion and digital culture. An evening of everyday gestures, excessive body worship in dance, intimate encounters and acts of exhaustion.

Next week, as part of our focus on Aesthetics of Access, we will be focussing on audio description, an accessibility tool that gives blind and visually impaired people access to artistic works. As there are many possibilities for creative use here, we are offering a workshop on December 10 and 11 with the super experts in audio description: the British collective Quiplash. We are delighted that the workshop is already fully booked, but if you would like to join the waiting list, please feel free to write to: workshops@gessnerallee.ch.

If you want to find out who Quiplash is or if you are in the mood for lots of glitter, humour and drag from the UK before the holidays, come to the ‘Unsightly Drag and Friends’ show on December 13 and 14. Under the motto ‘Joy as an act of resistance’, drag kings, queens and things from Quiplash will flood the room with all kinds of laughter, queer and crip joy and, above all, a show filled to the brim with excellent integrated audio description! With Tito Bone, Ebony Rose Dark, Venetia Blind and their Zurich friend Edwin Ramirez - sitting, seeing, sexy and known to many as an important figure in the local crip-queer community, comedian and one-half of Criptonite.The Gessnerallee's winter play, so to speak. To the tickets

You can hear more about the background to the work in the audio interview between Gessnerallee dramaturge Noa Winter and Amelia Lander-Cavallo, co-director of Quiplash, ‘Komisch, traurig, politisch - Audiodeskription und Drag’, or read the abridged interview in German in our newspaper. To the article (Audio Interview and German version)

Now for the weekly overview of programme items, newspaper articles, news and everything we want to share with you:

Programme recommendations for this and the coming week

5 to 7 December

‘Exposure’ by Alexandra Bachzetsis / Cullberg

Together with the renowned Swedish dance company, the Swiss performance artist explores the relationships between nudity and clothing, tenderness and violence, intimacy and alienation. More information

7 December

‘untamed.night’ by untamed.love

The queer-feminist sex shop untamed.love celebrates its fifth birthday at Stall6 - with lots of glitter and surprises. Find out more

12 December

‘Szenen der Flucht’ by Papierlose Zeitung

Migrants take the floor themselves. They talk about migration and politics, life and resistance from their perspective - personally, journalistically and poetically. More information

13 and 14 December

‘Unsightly Drag and Friends’ by Quiplash

Between musical and stand-up comedy, abstract worlds and smooth moves: a somewhat different cabaret evening from the drag kings, queens and things from Quiplash. More information

Newspaper

‘Time for Care’

The second issue of our newspaper is out now. You can find out more about thematic focuses, collaborations and individual articles in the editorial. To the article

‘Aesthetics of Access - exploring artistic accessibility’

About art that offers disabled and deaf/hard of hearing visitors the same aesthetic experience as the non-disabled, hearing public. To the article

‘Komisch, traurig, politisch - Audiodeskription und Drag’

Noa Winter, queer and disabled dramaturge at Gessnerallee, talks to queer, blind co-director Amelia Lander-Cavallo of the company Quiplash about her show ‘Unsightly Drag’, integrated audio description and relaxed performance. To the article

If you are interested in our newspaper, we would be delighted if you order it from Rahel Bains. As of today, you can order the first and second issues directly to your home for CHF 5 each (plus CHF 2 postage). E-mail to: zeitung@gessnerallee.ch

Furthermore

Our annual general assembly will take place on 12 December at 6 pm. You can find more information about the association here. If you are curious and possibly interested in becoming a member of the association, please contact us at info@gessnerallee.ch. We look forward to welcoming new fans and friends of Gessnerallee. As a member, you will have the opportunity to get involved and can look forward to attractive benefits.

We are also currently advertising for an internship in communications from February 2025. As a communications intern, you will support the Head of Communications at Gessnerallee in her day-to-day work. You will also support artists in publicising their work and attracting audiences. To the job advertisement

We wish you a pleasant second half of the week and look forward to your visit.

The Gessnerallee team

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