Nicoleta Esinencu & teatru-spălătorie

Memory Distortion. M I X T A P E

  • Theatre
with German and English surtitles /  Moldavian Romanian /  Russian / 

Nicoleta Esinencu, who has recently been awarded the prestigious ITI Prize, returns to HAU with her collective teatru-spălătorie from Chișinău. The starting point for “Memory Distortion. M I X T A P E” are audio tracks that were initially erased, recorded over, and rediscovered – cassettes containing voices and fragments – in which personal and political history overlap. From these traces, teatru-spălătorie develops a polyphonic, musical and performative collage about distorted memory, the political rewriting of history, and the question of what remains audible of the past.

Who gets to decide what to record, what to keep and what to forget? Individual biographies intertwine with fascism, war, migration, neoliberal transformation and exploitation. Memory appears not as a reliable archive, but as a contested space, marked by omissions, ideological frameworks and deliberate rewriting. Through musical loops, repetitions and breaks, past and present shift into one another. In the process, neo-colonial and power-political dynamics within Europe become visible. With the sharpness, humour and political urgency typical of the collective, an evening emerges exploring how memory becomes a battleground.

Team

By: Nicoleta Esinencu, Artiom Zavadovsky, Doriana Talmazan, Kira Semionov, Nora Dorogan / Video: David Egger / Translation: Artiom Zavadovsky, Ciprian Marinescu, Cornelia Winkler / Performers: Artiom Zavadovsky, Doriana Talmazan, Kira Semionov

Dates

Current
  • German premiere
    Wed 10.6.2026, 19:00 / HAU2
  • Thu 11.6.2026, 19:00 / HAU2

Price: 17–22 €, reduced 9–12 €

After the Performance at the 11.6.: Artist Talk / Moderation: Gábor Thury / Englisch

Credits

Production: teatru-spălătorie. Co-production: HAU Hebbel am Ufer, FFT Düsseldorf. Supported by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation in Moldova and the International Theatre Institute Centre Germany

 

Location

HAU2
Hallesches Ufer 34, 10963 Berlin

There are two marked parking spots in front of the building. Barrier-free restroom facilities are available. Four relaxed seats are available in the first row of HAU2.

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