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OPEN STUDIO – Ein kollaboratives Theaterlabor für Inszenierung mit Klang

«Until They Hear Black Voices»
Fazil On Yu

PerformanceMusic

An invitation to listen – four groups of artists explore how sound can be staged in Dimitri de Perrot's OPEN STUDIO and share their search for new forms of theatre in public performances.

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  • Thu 26/0320:00

    Premiere followed by a snack and drink reception

    Südbühne

  • Fri 27/0318:00

    Followed by a talk

    Südbühne

  • Sat 28/0318:00

    Südbühne

  • Sat 28/0320:00

    Südbühne

For OPEN STUDIO, Fazil On Yu is developing a sound-based narrative performance that gives voice to the stories of Black people in Switzerland and Europe. Copyright: Khasim Ndiwalana

In OPEN STUDIO, artists from various disciplines are collaborating with the sound artist, director and stage designer Dimitri de Perrot to explore productions that use sound as a central creative medium. They are developing ideas, perspectives, and artistic approaches: How can sound be used to think, design, narrate?

At the heart of Fazil On Yu's work is hearing: experiences of exclusion, invisibility and the search for orientation in a space that often offers him no echo. With ‘Until They Hear Black Voices’, On Yu has developed a sound narrative performance that makes the voices and stories of Black people in Switzerland and Europe audible – a narrative of complex struggles, loss and identity.

The starting point is audio recordings, interviews, poems and his own pieces of music, which he collected and produced in Zurich. In OPEN STUDIO, they are woven together into a resonance chamber: fragments that not only document, but also seek a new form of storytelling – between installation and performance, between sound and body.

Information on accessibility and language

  • Stepless access

  • Age: Recommended for ages 16 and over

  • Audience conditions: There is no seating; however, chairs and beanbags (subject to reservation) are available for those requiring accessibility support.

  • Language: Spoken in English

  • Sensory stimuli: Relatively dark room

  • Content notes: The work addresses the themes of racism and exclusion. It uses documentary audio recordings, some of which contain racist remarks.

For over ten years, sound artist Dimitri de Perrot has been exploring the intersection of sound, space and staging with his creations. OPEN STUDIO is a project that represents the logical progression of this practice – and an artistic act of sharing. Here, de Perrot invites other artists to explore the possibilities of sound-based narrative forms in their own language and aesthetic.

The topics range from transnational distance (RRRRRR Collective) to the loss of a friend (Papst/Glanzmann) to the experiences of Black people in Europe (Fazil On Yu) and the invisibility of marginalised identities (Zainab J Lascandri). All projects are based on biographical fragments, interviews or personal archives and transform them into poetically condensed sound spaces.

  • Artists

    Zainab J Lascandri, supported by Fatima Moumouni, Tracy September & Brandy Butler

    RRRRRR Collective: Keng Chen, Wen-Chi Liu, Eneas Nikolai Prawdzic, Dino Radoncic, Nathalie Stirnimann, Stefan Stojanovic
    Special thanks to Jinn Cheung und Zou Siyan

    Anna Papst / Vincent Glanzmann

    Fazil On Yu

    Documentation

    Text documentation: Smilla Diener, Salomé Voegelin

    Video documentation: Jessie Fischer

    Team Studio DdP

    Concept, artistic direction, and production: Dimitri de Perrot

    Sound engineering: Max Molling

    Lighting design: Karl Egli / Groups

    Set construction: Leo Hoffmann

    Stage: Lea Meierhofer

    Technical direction: Raphaël Vuilleumier

    Communication and think tank: Christoph Meier

    Production

    Verein Studio DdP

    Co-Production

    Gessnerallee

  • Fazil On Yu (Onyu Fazil Bin Damusanga) is a choreographer, performer, and sound artist with roots in Uganda who lives in Winterthur. His work moves between theater, sound art, and activism—at the intersection of political engagement, social reflection, and sensory spatial experience. Growing up in a small village in Uganda, shaped by oral and communal storytelling traditions, he brings a perspective that enters into dialogue with his new environment in Europe.

    His works deal with questions of belonging, loss, and identity, combining personal experiences with social engagement. He understands theater as a space for intervention, empowerment, and collective memory. His works have been shown internationally, including at the Uganda National Theater, various African art festivals, and performance platforms in Zurich and Europe. In 2022, he received the prestigious Prince Claus Award in Amsterdam and in 2021 the Movimentale Dance Arts Festival Award in Naples, Italy.

    Dimitri de Perrot lives and works in Zurich. He began his artistic career in the 1990s as a DJ and turntablist and developed into a sound artist, director and stage designer, as well as a lecturer at the Zurich University of the Arts (ZHdK). His work focuses on storytelling with sound and space at the intersection of theatre, music and visual arts.

  • City of Zurich Culture, Canton of Zurich Culture Office, Landis & Gyr Foundation, Hans F. Tellenbach Foundation.

    Dimitri de Perrot / Studio DdP is supported by the City and Canton of Zurich with a concept grant / multi-year group grant for 2024-2027. He is ‘Artist in Residence’ at Le Centquatre – Paris.

    OPEN STUDIO uses elements from the stage play NIEMANDSLAND by Dimitri de Perrot; the corresponding credits can be found on his website.

Copyright: Khasim Ndiwalana

Copyright: Khasim Ndiwalana

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