The Queer Performance Festival takes place from 12-16 November. In this article, voices from the queer community report on Homecoming – The Grand Showcase, which fired up the Theater im Delphi on 15 November.
Queer spaces in Berlin are sparse. Those which do exist are threatened with closure and constantly face attacks. Queer performances often appear on small stages. Not the Queer Performance Festival, where diverse artists and collectives showcase their work and empower the audience on a stage framed with a concrete rainbow arch. A whole weekend with workshops and performances by and for the queer community in Berlin. That’s reason enough to celebrate. This article was inspired by a discussion with two people from the audience and is intended to reflect voices from the community:
Spoken word interludes, stripteases, and pole dancing numbers, live singing, media installations and of course … drag. The Grand Showcase had all that and more to offer. Topics like home and belonging, Palestine and police violence, the critique of capitalism and friendships are brought to the stage by diverse voices from the community in a way that is both entertaining and profound. We can’t help wondering about the lack of familiar faces we come across at queer spaces and the somewhat reserved atmosphere in the audience. Is fancy Prenzlauer Berg to blame, or the theater as a strict space with strict rules for behavior, or maybe even the uncomfortable chairs (although they’re more an invitation to get up and dance along)?
After the evening, a number of impressions remain and too little time to digest the depth of the individual performances in their entirety. We found the musical performance by Lilly Mortis and the graceful and delicate movements of Robyn Robin on the pole, which together amounted to a plea for friendships, to be particularly moving. They remind us that when fear, isolation, and division threaten to prevail community can not only serve as an individual resource but also as a political power.
Drag King Buba Sababa brings catchy images to the stage. He helps himself to hand(only)fuls of spaghetti and pizza. “Money, success, fame, glamour”. Everything is stuffed inside and so entirely embodied that eventually nothing else can exist. The performance collective Slut Riot moves us with live singing and a two-person pole dance number, which is naked, vulnerable, sensitive, and, most importantly, strong. A number of other trans*, non-binary, queer performers make the evening special, including Zenergy, Jota Kayodê Ramos, Dornika, Eddy Entropy, Dianna Jacksan, Cat Jones, Aurah Jendafaaq, Lucio Vidal, Magic Dyke, and Godxxx Noirphiles.
Something that the larger performance scene can learn from queer artists is the direct contact with the audience. The fourth wall is not only occasionally shattered in a daring attempt to instill discomfort in both the audience and performer. It basically doesn’t exist on the queer stage. The audience goes from being a passive observer to an active co-creator. The feelings and expressions of the audience are as valuable as those of the performers.
A bold idea. Perhaps we’ll rethink high culture next time and instead head to a drag musical.
English translation by Melissa Maldonado
Homecoming – The Grand Showcase was shown on 15 November 2025 at Theater im Delphi in the frame of the Queer Performance Festival. The Festival took place from 12-16 November 2025.
