Das Tanztheaterprojekt Hajusom arbeitet schon seit Jahren mit Geflüchteten. Drei Mitglieder geben Einblicke in einen vielschichtigen Schaffensprozess.
The performative dance project Hajusom has been working with refugees for a number of years. Three members explain the project’s multifaceted workflow.
It’s warm in the “Bunker”, a cultural centre in Hamburg. Almost too warm. The air is stuffy and smells a bit musty./Sounds are muffled because of the thick walls./From floor to floor it gets louder, electronic sounds ring out. Their rhythms shift abruptly./Young people move their bodies like ballerinas, then almost robot-like to Wolfgang Mitterer’s contemporary classical music.
They’re rehearsing for their dance performance “Silmandé”./Among them is Aboubakar Badi Maiga. He goes by Abou./The 21-year-old fled from Mali to Germany in 2011. That same year he applied for asylum, just like 27 other Malians [Source: Federal Office for Migration and Refugees]. He’s been living here ever since./Abou is part of Hajusom, a transnational art project. He’s part of an on-going ensemble.
Hajusom has been around for almost 18 years. The name is a combination of the names of three former members: Hatice, Jusef and Omied. All of whom were unaccompanied-minor refugees. Just like Abou when he came to Hamburg./(Dorothea Reinicke, Art Direct and Initiator) “Our vision was to combine the artistic with the social and political.”/In concrete terms, everyone can contribute their own ideas—from individual biographies to the most current topics and events./Out of that idea the ensemble develops a piece together, and the art directors develop a dramaturgical arc, suggesting different performative elements./“Collaboration in the ensemble is very solid. People here have something they can resonate with. We call this the Hajusom spirit.”/(Ania Faas, Public Relations) “But no one can really put their finger on it.”
“Hajusom brings people together. The project offers social and emotional security.”/“Many of the people in Hajusom have had experiences similar to mine. We understand each other.”/“For me it feels like home. As if I were part of a family.”
“When I first came to Germany, I was very pensive and sad. But when I perform in the theatre I feel free.”/“It helps many people think about what they need in life.”/Why did Abou leave Mali? He didn’t see a future for himself there because of the civil war and the lack of educational opportunities. Germany was different./The 21-year-old laughs about the fact that he didn’t like Hajusom at first. Back then, a social worker brought him there for the first time./When they practiced the “Coupé decalé”, an African dance, he decided to stay with Hajusom./But everything doesn’t always run smoothly, says Ania. The subsidy policies in Hamburg cause problems.
Everything is seen in terms of money, and the ideas of cultural initiatives experts aren’t heard. Added to that are complicated registration forms./“Integration is always seen as a one-way street. You come here, then you get a puzzle piece, and then you have to see that it fits somehow.”/Experience at Hajusom shows that it’s not always easy to work with young refugees./“The participants aren’t asked what their names are or where they come from. Never. They come for one, maybe two years, without anyone ever knowing who they are.”/Most of them have to regain their self-confidence, process trauma, and simultaneously become adults, says Ania. Hajusom doesn’t want to put any pressure on them./“But sure, at first the group is very fragile.”/Gradually they begin to take on more responsibility. Eventually they become part of the larger, more established ensemble.
“Of course Abou was unsure at first. But he had always been a serious and conscientious person.”/When offered the opportunity, Abou visited his home for a few days./As part of the piece “Aller Et Retour”, the ensemble visited their cooperation partner in Ouagadougou in Burkina Faso, which neighbours Mali./Mali continues to be unstable politically. The West-African country is split into the Islamic-controlled North and the government-occupied South./Frequently resulting in attacks./Despite the fact that the protocol for getting into and out of the country safely is very strict—do research, contact an attorney who can talk to the foreigners’ registration office, and organise paperwork—both Abou’s former guardian and Hajusom helped him take the trip.
“I didn’t see my family for five years.”/His mother hugged him for a long time and sobbed when she saw him again, after which they spoke for hours./Fleeing, then arriving in Germany, the projects at Hajusom—all these things changed Abou. He became more adult and now knows what’s important in life./“Now I’m fighting to achieve something with my life.”/Currently he’s training to be a metal construction worker./It’s his dream to study engineering. Regardless of Hajusom, that won’t be easy, because without a German Abitur, gaining access to university is hardly if not impossible to obtain./The premiere of “Silmandé” takes place in June.
