Which deaths and which births have influenced and changed my life so far? Who have I welcomed, who have I lost and said farewell to – and what has happened to me in the process? The latest long-term project by Mats Staub asks about existential experiences. It approaches universal themes through individual experiences and in relation to local contexts. In every place it is presented it brings people together to talk to each other about their experiences of death and birth – while also presenting conversations from other regions and establishing connections from one side of the world to another. As a video installation in theatre spaces it aims to create locations that permit intimacy while at the same time facilitating a communal experience. In «Death and Birth in My Life» he brings two people together in a clearly defined space and enables them to engage each other in conversation while he is present as an invisible companion. The participants are filmed both speaking and listening – so visitors to the installation will be able to look at the faces of both the speakers and the listeners shown on two screens.
Idea, Concept, Direction: Mats Staub
Camera: Benno Seidel, Matthias Stickel
Scenography: Monika Schori
Dramaturgical Associate: Simone von Büren, Elisabeth Schack
Research: Tim Harrison (Manchester), Maia Marie (Magaliesburg), Patrick Mudekereza (Lubumbashi), Dada Kahindo (Kinshasa), Marcus Rehberger (Basel), Nele Beinborn (Frankfurt), Wolfram Sander (Hannover), Leo Saftic (Perg), Celya Larré (Paris)
Technical Direction: Hanno Sons, Stefan Göbel
Postproduction: Benno Seidel
Translation, Subtitles: Simona Weber, Martin Thomas Pesl, Matthias Stickel, Benno Seidel
Production Management: Barbara Simsa, Elisabeth Schack
Production: zwischen_produktionen
Co-production: Kaserne Basel, SICK! Festival Manchester, Künstlerhaus Mousonturm Frankfurt, Festival Theaterformen Hannover, Festival der Regionen, Spielart Festival Munich, Centre culturel suisse Paris, Migros-Kulturprozent
Funding: Fachausschuss Tanz und Theater BS/BL, Pro Helvetia Swiss Arts Council, Christoph Merian Stiftung, Ernst Göhner Stiftung