Anna Tenti, born in Münsterland, studied philosophy, German language and literature, and later theatre studies. After working as an assistant director on various productions, Anna has been working as a freelance director since 2022, bringing her perspective on the surprises of everyday life to the stage. Her work has taken her to the Schauspiel Köln, Schauspiel Dortmund, Theater Lübeck and Stadttheater Fürth. In the current season, a work will also be shown at the Landestheater Coburg. In addition to her work as a director, she also works as a curator and artistic production manager for save the world e.V. and krass&krasser, among others.
Jessica Samantha Starr Weisskirchen began her theatre career as an assistant director in Heidelberg and later at the National Theatre in Mannheim, where she created her first works. As a director, she staged Moby Dick at Schauspiel Hannover in the 24/25 season. In 25/26, she will open the season at Staatstheater Nürnberg (premiere of Die erste Liebe hält 5 Jahre) and work at Schauspiel Dortmund (Pidor & der Wolf) and Thalia Theater Hamburg (Jessis Nach(t)bar & der König stirbt).
She is the founder of the assistant network, a board member of the ensemble network, the initiator of the assistant festival SUMMER UP and a jury member for the process funding of the Performing Arts Fund. She completed her Master of Arts in Theatre and Orchestra Management (HfMDK Frankfurt) in 2022; her master's thesis examined the working conditions of assistants in German-speaking theatre.
In 2023, her article ‘Nur die Bretter, die die Welt bedeuten’ (Only the boards that mean the world) was published in the anthology ‘Systemkritik!’ (System Criticism!). In the same year, she was a member of the jury for the Federal Theatre Prize (category: municipal theatre/regional stages).
Aurora Kellermann studied acting and theatre studies in Rome. She moved to Berlin in 2007, where she worked as an actress, performer, author and director on various projects both at municipal theatres and in Berlin's independent theatre scene. Since November 2014, together with Chris Wohlrab, she has lead TATWERK | Performative Forschung (funded as a production venue since 2021) and is responsible for curating the program, communication and artistic supervision of the projects. She has been artistically active since 2008 - under the labels AKR and DERIVAT as well as the Welcome Project, a feminist formation based in Berlin and Turin. Within the Performing Arts Program, she edited the rehearsal space platform (Proberaumplattform, 2016-2021) and led the support program #performingsafety (2020/21). She is a co-founder and board member of nota e.V., which operates the online-based montage software of the same name.
Christiane Kretschmer studied Applied Theatre Studies in Gießen and Cultural Studies in Leipzig. She worked as a dramaturg at Sophiensæle Berlin, where she conceptualized numerous festivals, series, and focus areas, with a particular emphasis on nurturing emerging talents. Most recently, she worked in adult education and provided consulting services for associations seeking funding. Since 2024, she has been responsible for co-coordinating the Information Center, including its train the trainer formats, within the Performing Arts Program.
Daniel Grünauer began his theatre career at the Burgfestspiele Leuchtenberg. After studying theatre studies, German language and literature, political science and performing arts in Munich, Würzburg and Caen, he worked at the Landestheater Oberpfalz (co-founder), Theater Ulm (senior dramaturg), Theater Konstanz (chief dramaturg), Schauspielhaus Graz and Theater Regensburg, among others. He also works as a freelance director and author, coordinated the Swiss Theater Meeting in 2020 and was part of the management team at the RathausOper Konstanz from 2020 to 2024.
He published the book Die Explosion der Erinnerung (The Explosion of Memory) in 2010 and is co-editor of THEATER_STADT_POLITIK (2019). His teaching activities have taken him to the Aicher-Scholl-Kolleg and the Academy of Performing Arts in Ulm. He is a co-initiator of the dramaturgy network d-n and was a scholarship holder of the ETC European Theatre Academy (2021) and the ETC Staff Exchange (2022). International collaborations connect him with theatre makers in Europe, Africa and the Middle East. Since October 2023, he has been dramaturg at the Berliner Ensemble, where he heads the international programme for young directors, WORX.
Paul Maximilian Pira is an actor, director, Feldenkrais practitioner (ATM & FI) and coach. After completing his master's degree at the Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy University of Music and Theatre in Leipzig, he held long-term positions at the municipal theatres in Halle (Saale) and Bamberg. Since 2021, he has been working as a freelancer and continues to perform as a guest at municipal theatres. His training was influenced by Jurij Vasiljev, Christiane Höfler, the Chekhov method and the biomechanics of Gennadi N. Bogdanov at the Mimecentrum Berlin. He trained as a Feldenkrais coach at the Antje Aldag Academy in Berlin.
He is a founding member of THEATER (IN) ZIVIL, co-developer of school theatre projects aimed at preventing violence and bullying (Theatertill) and author of the column ‘Kill The Theaterfolklore’ in the BFFS's Schauspiegel magazine. Since 2021, he has been a member of the board of ensemble-netzwerk e.V., co-organiser of the 2021/22 National Ensemble Assembly and, in 2023, artistic director of the Träum Weiter Festival. He is also a member of the ensemble and cooperative and captain of the Traumschüff Theatre.
Laia Montoya is a cultural manager and performing arts producer. She has a degree in Political and Administration Sciences (UPF) and a post-degree in international cooperation and cultural management (IL3-UB). Based in Berlin, she is co-director of TINA Agency, a multi-local organization that manages and promotes international projects with artists and institutions from the dance field. As a cultural manager, recently she has developed projects with organizations such as Graner in Barcelona, ICEC - Berlin and Catalan Arts, New Theater Institute of Latvia, Studio Alta and Bazaar Festival in Prague, LAFT Berlin, Loom Festival in Barcelona, among others, promoting of the internationalization of the performing arts in their countries. In 2020 she received the OSIC grant for performing arts research with a project on Queer Theatre in Catalonia: methods for production and programming.
Her work focuses on internationalization of the arts, while her main interests are sustainability, transversality and accessibility to art and culture.
Christin Eckart studied Theater Studies, Art History, Critical Psychology and Linguistics in Berlin and Orléans. She works as a producer, curator, director and dramaturg in the independent performing arts scene in Berlin. Since 2019, she has been responsible for co-coordinating the Information Center and the Mentoring Program within the Performing Arts Program. In 2020/21, she supported production venues in Berlin as part of the project #performingsafety in addressing pandemic-related challenges. She is currently the contact person for the support program ACCESS – Improving Access to Berlin's Cultural Funding.
A collaborative event by touring artists, ensemble-netzwerk and PAP - Performing Arts Programm.
The Berlin Performing Arts Program is a program of LAFT Berlin – Landesverband freie darstellende Künste Berlin e. V. The project "Performing Arts Program – Support, Advice and Qualification in Transformation (PAP-UBQ)" is supported by the European Social Fund Plus with funds from the European Union and the state of Berlin.
