CITY X - FRAGMENTS OF A WAR (UA), an audio guide by Gernot Grünewald with texts by Luda Tymoshenko and Maryna Smilianets (translated into German by Lydia Nagel) will premiere at Schauspiel Stuttgart on May 6, 2023.
The topic of war has become increasingly relevant in Europe since Russia’s attack on Ukraine. Despite being inundated with frightening reports and horrific images via news and social media, most people remain disconnected from the feeling of constant, acute threat and the reality of war that suddenly and radically alters everyday life.
City X, a production based on reports from Ukrainian cities, the experiences of those who left and those who remained, and the biographies marked by Soviet rule and the ongoing struggle for independence, offers a unique perspective. By projecting a reality of war onto the urban space of Stuttgart, viewers are able to grasp the tangible changes that occur in everyday life in a war-torn city and the lives of its residents against the backdrop of a familiar urban setting.
Director Gernot Grünewald, alongside Ukrainian authors Luda Tymoshenko and Maryna Smilianets, who are currently serving as Artists in Residence at the Schauspiel Stuttgart, creates a parallel space of experience that provides insight into the fate of those affected and reminds us of the fragility of European peace. Through multiple exposures, City X examines the diverse and divergent living conditions of our time, rendering it a conurbation that reflects the complex reality of war in Europe.