Last week, we welcomed four new students to Bremen and hosted a lovely dinner in the old restaurant “Ratskeller” at the city center:
Before dinner, some students had the chance to make a wish with the famous Bremen town musicians:
On November 29, 2002, we held the William ‘71 and Elke Durden Literary Series at Bremen, presenting a film about Ukraine called The Hamlet Syndrome at the movie theater City 46. It was a pre-premiere of a documentary that will be officially released in Germany in January 2023 and has received several awards, including the Grand Prix de la Semaine de la Critique for Best Film at the Locarno Film Festival. After the screening, Anja Quickert talked with the co-director Piotr Rosołowski.
The documentary The Hamlet Syndrome (PL/D 2022) was directed by Elwira Niewiera & Piotr Rosołowski (original in Ukrainian, with German subtitles). It documented the rehearsals of the theater play The Hamlet Effect which was produced with the support of the International Heiner Müller Society.
A few months prior to Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, five young women and men participate in a unique stage production that attempts to relate their war experiences to Shakespeare’s Hamlet and Heiner Müller’s Hamletmachine. For each of them, the stage is a platform to express their grief and trauma through the famous question, “to be or not to be,” a dilemma that applies to their own lives. The protagonists fight against disappointment, powerlessness, and anger, trying to put their lives back in order while processing their painful past: Slavik, who went through the hell of war and captivity as a soldier, Katia, who longs for her mother’s forgiveness for joining the army, Rodion, who escaped from Donbas and is now facing growing homophobia, Roman, who is still struggling with the traumatic memories of his experience as a paramedic on the battlefield, and Oksana, who struggles on an artistic frontline as an actress.
Re-enacting being blackmailed to shoot
The rehearsals of the play are combined with an intense glimpse into the characters’ lives creating a powerful portrait of the generation coping with the trauma of war which now, after Russia invaded Ukraine, is their present and future alike. The Hamlet Syndrome is a powerful portrait of a vibrant young Ukrainian generation, the first one born after the collapse of the Soviet Union, shaped by the Maidan Revolution of 2013, empowered by political change and scarred by war.
The Hamlet Syndrome (2022) Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lbmFWXOhn4k
Piotr Rosołowski is a Polish director, screenwriter, and cinematographer based in Berlin. He graduated from the Katowice Film School and was awarded an Academy of Media Arts scholarship in Cologne. Co-author of Rabbit a la Berlin – Academy Award-nominated short documentary film and co-director of Domino Effect with Elwira Niewiera. Their latest documentary film The Prince and the Dybbuk won the Lion for Best Documentary on Cinema at the 74th Venice Film Festival. Piotr also works as director of photography, he shot many awarded feature and short films, among them: On the line, dir. Reto Caffi – Academy Award-nominated short fiction, The Wall of Shadows, dir. Eliza Kubarska – awarded with the annual prize of Polish Society of Cinematographers.
Elwira Niewiera is a director and scriptwriter born in 1976. She is the author of well-known and award-winning documentaries made together with Piotr Rosołowski, such as The Domino Effect (awarded with the Golden Horn and the Golden Hobby Horse at the 54th Krakow Film Festival as well as the Golden Dove at the IFF DOK Leipzig) and The Prince and the Dybbuk (including the Golden Lion for the best documentary on cinema at the 74th Venice Film Festival and the Polish Film Award 2019 for the Best Documentary Film). In her artistic work, she focuses primarily on political, social and cultural transformations in Eastern Europe. She is the winner of the Young German Cinema Award 2020 and the prestigious American Chicken & Egg Award 2021.
Anja Quickert lives in Berlin as a freelance writer (for Theater heute, among others). Since 2011 she has been the managing director of the International Heiner Müller Society. She curates, produces and directs theater. In 2021, she co-edited the first overview of independent venues in Berlin: Andere Räume – Die freien Spielstätten in Berlin and is a member of the DFG research group “Krisengefüge der Künste.”
This event of the “William ‘71 and Elke Durden Literary Series at Bremen” was organized by the Durden Dickinson Bremen Program at the University of Bremen, in cooperation with the International Heiner Müller Society, RFF – Real Fiction Filmverleih e.K. and Kommunalkino Bremen e.V. / City 46. The evening was supported by Dickinson College, Pennsylvania, USA, and by William G. and Elke Durden, whose generous donation we gratefully acknowledge.
Amidst international turmoil, we held our annual Christmas party again in the Dickisnon Room. However, this year, we did not perform the traditional “Julklapp” (giving each other gifts), but packed Christmas bags for children in Ukraine. The initiative was started by the Evangelical Church Community St. Markus in Bremen, organized by pastor Andreas Hamburg.
Students writing lists of contents and a Christmas message in Ukrainian
As every year, we were happy to celebrate Thanksgiving with the Carl Schurz German-American Club in Bremen in a festive atmosphere…
Our student Vasilisa with her family and the President of the German-American Club, Ulf-Brün Drechsel
Thanks to everyone for a wonderful evening and a great meal!
Listening to a welcome speech before dinner
by Mia Siemers
Students as emigrants
Our course “Comparative Cultures–USA/ Germany” went on a trip to the “Auswandererhaus” (Emigration Center) in Bremerhaven. In the beginning, each of us received a biography from one of the immigrants who travelled from different cities to the United States. As the tour continued, we got more information about their crossing as well as their lives in a foreign country. The guide told us a variety of interesting aspects and facts from 1620 to the present. We were able to get an insight into the history of immigration due to a multimedia exhibition. Over all, it was a great experience with lots of new knowledge and laughter.
On the transatlantic ship passage
The final destination
by Dr. Janine Ludwig
November started with a wonderful visit from our colleague, Prof. Alyssa DeBlasio, Associate Professor and John B. Parsons Chair in the Liberal Arts and Sciences in the Russian Department at Dickinson College.
She was invited to the annual literary festival globale° (http://globale-literaturfestival.de/) at Bremen to participate in a panel discussion on November 5, 2022 under the title “Literature and Science in Times of War” (https://globale-literaturfestival.de/05-11/). The in-depth discussion centered around questions of how Russian studies and Slavic Studies in general should react to the Russian War on Ukraine, among them: Should one cancel or re-evaluate certain pieces of art or literature? How does the present influence our ways of looking at the past and its cultural products? Prof. DeBlasio made the important suggestion to de-center Russian studies from Moscow, meaning to acknowledge all the Russian-speaking people and cultures outside of a Moscow-centered narrative which needs to be critically evaluated. Oxana Matiychuk, a Ukrainian German philologist at the University of Tscherniwzi/Czernowitz, corroborated this with regard to Spanish studies which are not focused on Spain alone and German Studies which should not uncritically coopt Swiss or Austrian authors, for example.
From left to right: Libuše Černá (Head of the globale° Literature Festival), Merle Meyer interpreting for Alyssa DeBlasio, Oxana Matiychuk (Chernivtsi National University), Gun-Britt Kohler (University of Oldenburg), Simon Lewis (University of Bremen)
Thankfully, Prof. DeBlasio had already been preparing for some years, together with Izolda Savenkova, a textbook to do exactly this: ПРО-ДВИЖЕНИЕ: Advanced Russian Through Film and Media. Forthcoming with Georgetown University Press, 2022.
The invitation occurred via a nice Dickinson connection which underscores the depth and impact of the long-lasting partnership between Bremen and Carlisle through our exchange program: Two former students of the University of Bremen, Merle Meyer and Daniel Schmidt, who had studied abroad at Dickinson College, were part of the organizing team of the globale°. Daniel, who had taken a class on “Philosophy and Literature” with Prof. DeBlasio, invited her to contribute a text on the letter “Z” for an event at the Bremen Theater in March (https://www.theaterbremen.de/de_DE/wort-ergreifen-2) and then invited her to the globale°. Maybe this can be seen as a reminder of how important international communication and cooperation still is – these days more than ever.
Daniel Schmidt, Alyssa DeBlasio, Merle Meyer, Janine Ludwig (from left to right)
Vasilisa Pallis, student of German and Russian Studies, currently studying in Bremen, with her professor DeBlasio at the statue of the Bremen Town Musicians, making a wish
Alyssa DeBlasio and Janine Ludwig at the Bremer Ratskeller
After a Covid pause, soon we will go to Poland again – exciting! 🙂
Music: www.bensound.com
Music: www.Bensound.com
by Mac Tambussi ’23
When I was picking which college to go to my senior year of high school, I knew studying abroad was a huge factor in my decision. Ultimately, I landed on Dickinson, which has great study abroad programs all over the world. Before I started school, I went to Germany in 2019 with my host family and fell in love with the country. After I returned to the U.S., I knew I wanted to come back. When I found out Dickinson had a program in Germany, I was ecstatic and had a feeling that when Junior spring came around, I would be back in the country that I grew to love.
When going through the application process, I knew the program was in Bremen, but to be honest, I did not know Bremen existed. Well fast forward to today, I consider Bremen my second home. In the six months I spent in Bremen, I formed friendships, tried new activities, learned more about the culture, and overall just had a blast.
The friendships I made, both people from Dickinson and the USA on the trip, and those from Germany and all over the world, have made a huge impact on my life. My friends and I went on many trips to many different cities/amusements across Germany and Europe such as Cologne, Hamburg, Bonn, Heide Park, Bremerhaven, Berlin, Vienna, and Amsterdam. In addition in Bremen, we were able to travel to different parts of the city, where we would try new restaurants, go shopping, help in service activities, watch soccer, and go to clubs (my personal favorite was Modernes). In addition to that, I and two of my friends joined the rugby team, where we were able to form a solid friendship with them also.
The school aspect was also really cool. For the first two months, we spent time with
both Aristoles and Goethe Institute learning the language. This was because almost all of our classes at the University of Bremen were in German. After becoming proficient in German, we began our classes. Three of my classes were business related and one was Political Science related. They were all super interesting and gave me a different perspective on how higher education is in Germany and different viewpoints. All in all, I had a great learning experience in Germany.
Lastly, learning about the culture and trying new foods was a highlight. Having Doner Kebab, Wiener Schnitzel, and Wurst was awesome. Everything was delicious! Trying different things, playing new games, and experiencing the culture from a first-hand experience were amazing. The Dickinson in Germany study abroad experience is one I will never forget. I was able to try so many different things and get to meet and see so many friends! I liked it so much, that I am currently applying for a Fulbright Grant to be an English Teaching Assistant in Germany. I can’t wait to come back to visit. Till next time Germany!
by Shannon Vogel
At the University of Bremen, the Hochschulsport provides many fitness classes for
students to take for a relatively low price. Dickinson will also reimburse you up to a certain amount to take these courses. You can see a list of past/current course offerings on their website, as well as when registration goes live for the upcoming semester. They offer several styles of dance, martial arts, team sports (volleyball, rugby, etc.) and yoga.
I took a Modern Jazz course this semester, where I got to meet several other Uni Bremen students. Our class had the opportunity to perform at the Breminale, a music festival in Bremen. The class focused on learning a few combos, as well as an entire choreographed dance.
While the Hochschulsport classes provide many options, they do follow the semester class schedule (generally the lecture period), which means the courses won’t run the entirety of the time you are in Bremen. For me, I arrived in February and left in August, but the Modern Jazz course only ran from April through July. Since I still wanted to dance/exercise for the entire semester, I found an independent ballet studio in the city. There are a lot of dance studios throughout Bremen, but the one I settled on was polkadotBallettStudios. I found their prices fair and the staff helpful. They offer modern and hip-hop classes as well, but they are primarily a ballet studio. I signed up to take classes twice a week, and really enjoyed it! I got to learn some new German vocabulary, as well as meet people my age who don’t study at Uni Bremen.
If you’re interested in a particular style of dance, I do recommend researching all of your options in Bremen, as there are many studios in the city.