Preview of the 2026/27 Season

Dear visitors to Gessnerallee, dear artists

With just under two weeks to go, we’ll be taking a summer break and returning in mid-August. We’re looking forward to the break, but even more so to the next season. Because it’s going to be a cracker.

To help you start planning your autumn at the Gessnerallee now, here is an overview and a few pointers:

For those who’ll already be missing us in August

• 15 and 16 August: ‘Multitud’ by Tamara Cubas

• 27 August: ‘Crip Joy & Disabled Futures’ by Criptonite

For dance fans

• 10–15 September: ‘SYNTHETIC/Artefact’ by Tiran Willemse

• 19 and 20 September: ‘YOU CANNOT CAN’ by Dana Michel

• 3 October: ‘Shout Twice’ by Mélissa Guex, Katerina Andreou

• 16–18 November: ‘strike’, Wu Tsang, Moved by the Motion & NTGent

• 3–6 December: ‘Late to the Party’ by Trajal Harrell / Zürich Dance Ensemble

For music fans

• 20 September: Children’s concert with Gina Été

• 2 and 3 October: Backslash Festival 2026

• 8 November: Children’s concert with Batbait

• 12 and 14 November: ‘Pigeons Shirt 9.99 $’ by PRICE

For fans of exciting discussion formats

• 25 September and 11 December: ‘Die Neue Unsicherheit – Disco Edition’ by Fatima Moumouni

• 6 November: ‘Late Night Show’ by Fatima Moumouni & DIASBOAH

• 4 November and 2 December: ‘Monthly Themes’

• 16 September, 21 October, 11 November and 9 December: ‘Art in Conflict’ by Artasfoundation

For Gessnerallee fans

Why not buy an annual pass now? It’s definitely worth it. Buy an annual pass

And now a selection of articles from our newspaper that we’d like to share with you over the summer break:

Newspaper

The military, the motorway and independent theatre – the history of Gessnerallee

Journalist and photographer Julien Felber embarks on a historical journey through the more than 150-year history of Gessnerallee. From cavalry horses and barracks life, through youth movements and motorway plans, to independent theatre. He is accompanied by Alice Bamberger, a shopkeeper and contemporary witness, whose personal memories weave the history of the building together with that of the city. Read the article

When the lights go down

When the lights go down in the theatre, a promise hangs in the air. In ‘Thoughts on Theatre’, Catja Loepfe, the outgoing artistic director and managing director of Tanzhaus Zürich, writes about precisely this moment: that something can begin which would not be possible outside this space. Read the article

The possibility of meaning the whole world

In the ‘Thoughts on Theatre’ series, various authors write about their ‘thoughts on theatre’. An article by writer Laura Leupi on intense emotions, deep fears and the possibility of meaning the whole world. Read the article

‘An End to Tokenism’ by Marah Rikli

Accessible formats such as ‘relaxed performances’ have opened up theatres and created new avenues of access. But real change will only come about when people with disabilities are not just sitting in the audience, but are making decisions themselves – about programmes, aesthetics and structures. Read the article

‘The Need for Action Is Just Sitting Around on the Ground Floor’ by Marguerite Meyer

Accessibility, heritage conservation and administrative processes – the holy trinity of the impossible? How a theatre deals with this tension. Read the article

‘Our bodies are archives’ by Suban Biixi

The two artists Fatima Moumouni and Zainab J Lascandri on their childhoods as Black children and performance as a space for memory and resistance. A conversation about loneliness, invisibility – and the possibility of a different future. Read the article

Furthermore

We are looking for a Communications Intern (60%) to start on 1 November 2026, initially for five months until 31 March 2027 – with the option of extension. The application deadline is 9 August. More information on the job vacancy

We wish you a wonderful summer and look forward to welcoming you back to the Gessnerallee from August.

The Gessnerallee team