The freedom picnic 2026

ThE FREEDOM PICNIC

Berlin / May 07-10 2026 / DOCK ART theater / 90 Min

With THE FREEDOM PICNIC, choreographer Nir de Volff is developing a new collaborative project together with the dancers Medhat Adaabal and Mouafak Aldoabl. After ten years of artistic collaboration, during which they explored their diverse backgrounds and perspectives from the Middle East and their experiences of integration in Germany in the performance series “Come as you are”, conveying their vision of trust and hope, they now ask: How can we remain connected in freedom?

Amid political and economic turmoil, social fragmentation and loneliness, the need for inner and outer freedom presents a major challenge. Endless debates about immigration policy, border controls, gender equality and elndless hours of scroling with eampty feelings through Instagram or Tiktok have led to a sense of being overwhelmed .
THE FREEDOM PICNIC is a social experiment that combines dance, healing and a picnic. It is about reclaiming public space, about the right to be seen for who you are and how you feel; it is about telling stories and uncovering layers of the past and present to find answers to the complexities of belonging. Following an introductory performative dance exploration, the audience is invited to explore their own experiences with their breath and body within the safe space of the theatre auditorium. Nir de Volff introduces his BBM (Breathing Bodies Movement) technique; here, the breath is seen as an artistic and purifying tool for practising freedom within and with oneself. Medhat Adaabal and Mouafak Aldoabl invite the audience to join in a group Dabke dance, teaching techniques and movements. Afterwards, the dancers serve homemade and fresh dishes from the Middle East. Eating and dancing together are more than just entertainment; they are a living connection between people. And so the evening flows into a blend of free dancing and collective breathing, to purify the body and foster mutual freedom.

Concept and choreography: Nir de Volff
In collaboration with : Medhat Aldaabal, Moufak Aldoabl
Music: Mathiue Poterie
Costumes: Nir de Volff
Stage object: Daniel Höding
Light design: Asli Atasoy Öner
Production managment: Till Rothmund & Jill Emerson
Press: Kerstin Böttcher
Photos: Bermhard Musil

A Nir de Volff / TOTAL BRUTAL production, Funded by the Berlin Senate Department for Culture and Social Cohesion with the support of DOCK ART