Vertretungsstunde Über(Leben) - (2024)

Vertretungsstunde (Überleben) is a theatre piece for young audiences set in the familiar space of a classroom. When a substitute teacher, Uzay (Joèl Kito Salvatore), arrives for what seems like a normal lesson, he gradually begins to share his own experiences of racism and exclusion within the school system.

Through humor, direct address, and the interaction between Uzay and Scholle (Julia Korte), the piece tackles racism as it is institutionalized through everyday rules, expectations, and hierarchies in education. The classroom becomes a place where situations of prejudice and misunderstanding are not explained from above, but experienced and recognized through play and dialogue.

Karim Gamil’s staging of Emel Aydoğdu’s text creates an artistic experience that allows often unseen or unspoken experiences to become visible in a charming and accessible way, inviting young audiences to reflect on their own positions within institutional structures.

Stage Design: Merle Grund
Costume Design: Wiebke Wenker
Dramaturgy: Saskia Jabłońska
Production Assistant: Carina Erdmann/Hannah Prinzler

Photos by Moritz Küstner / Staatstheater Hannover