Lessingtage

Empowering people to take responsibility
 

Matthias Lilienthal, artistic director of the relaunched Lessingtage festival 2026, on finding the direction of his festival programming, post-populism, artificial intelligence and the forces that keep our democracy intact.

How do we respond to the challenges of a globalised world in which democracy and truth are increasingly coming under pressure? What do we do when populism moves towards the political centre and polarises societies?
 

This season, the Lessingtage are paying particular attention to the influence of technology, the erosion of democratic structures and the changing relationship between truth and reality. Germany's current political context makes the festival's theme particularly relevant: as the far-right party AfD gains support from the super-rich, such as Elon Musk, and the political climate is characterised by disinformation and escalation, the question arises as to how Europe and Germany can counter this development.

Die Hamburger Prozesse (The Hamburg Trials)

A central project of the Lessingtage 2026 is Milo Rau's Die Hamburger Prozesse (The Hamburg Trials). Rau, an internationally renowned theatre-maker, known for his tribunals on crimes against humanity, is now devising a trial against the major technology companies. Topics include meddling in the German federal elections, the erosion of democratic structures and the disregard for ethical boundaries by companies such as Google, Meta and OpenAI. In view of the increasing importance of artificial intelligence and its role in manipulating elections and exploiting labour, machine learning is a central topic on the agenda. What happens when machines start making decisions? With the spread of artificial intelligence and its application in almost all areas of life, we are at a turning point. The performing arts provide a space to address these complex issues, broaden perspectives and develop visions of a future in which technology does not replace people, but strengthens their sense of responsibility.

Post-populism – Spotlight on Poland

Another focus of the festival is Poland, a country that exemplifies the fight against populism. After years of anti-democratic rule by the PiS party and extensive infringements on the legal system and the media, Poland shows how democracy can be fought for and defended anew. The country has a history of renewal, which is deeply rooted in the Solidarność movement. But here, too, the question remains: how can redemocratisation succeed in a country scarred by populism? What can we learn as a society when populism is increasingly gaining a foothold even in the most liberal democracies in Europe?
 

Marguerite Duras – a game of life and death

With his latest production, director Julien Gosselin has once more landed a great success. Based on the literary works of Marguerite Duras, the project was developed at the Strasbourg School of Drama. Around 300 spectators gather on a stage, constantly redefining their relationship to the text.
The young performers' enthusiams balances the harshness and heaviness of the literary original. Formally, the performance resembles a spoken word concert that – with the use of video technology – oscillates between different media. This makes the Musée Duras project a larger-than-life exhibition showcasing the life's work of a great artist.
 

So much for the first three teasers of the 2026 Lessingtage programme. We invite you to join us for this festival – a journey for the senses and for the political mind in a time of great challenges for us all.

The programme will be published and tickets go on sale in November 2025