30 years of Tanztage Berlin represent a long festival history with a focus on emerging choreographic and dance artists, shifting curatorial emphases, changing production conditions, and evolving technical frameworks that have significantly shaped the festival.

In 2021, the current Artistic Director, Mateusz Szymanówka, interviewed his predecessors about their experiences of the festival’s development since its founding in 1996—particularly with regard to structural conditions for artists and the festival itself, as well as curatorial priorities.

For this year’s anniversary edition of Tanztage, we now turn our attention to the technical side of the festival and invite current and former Technical Directors of Tanztage Berlin and Sophiensæle to join the conversation. What role does technology actually play in a festival dedicated to dance and choreography? How have spaces, structures, and technical requirements changed over the past 30 years—from the early days at Pfefferberg, through the move to Sophiensæle when smoking was still allowed in the Festsaal, to today, 15 years after the extensive renovation of the Sophiensæle building and the spatial changes that came with it? What stories can be told through this history?

Between backstage anecdotes and questions of professionalization, institutionalization, curatorial practice, and artistic development, we will talk about 30 years of Tanztage’s technical history—and about what it still tells us today. We warmly invite you to join us, listen, and take part in the discussion.