Stuttgart celebrates spoken word again at 'Spoken Arts'

It is read and performed at the 'Spoken Arts Festival' in Stuttgart. In its third year, the literature festival is approaching a time that is almost ideal for the organizers.

, and Elizabeth Wells

2024 July 11 . 11:37 AM

2 min read

One can read books oneself or have them read aloud. The latter is the focus of the 'Spoken Arts... — One can read books oneself or have them read aloud. The latter is the focus of the 'Spoken Arts Festivals' in Stuttgart.

Literary Festival - Stuttgart celebrates spoken word again at 'Spoken Arts'

At its new edition, the "Spoken Arts Festival" in Stuttgart will put the focus on the German post-war era with prominent speakers, dancers, and musicians. The first round revolving around the spoken word previously illuminated the 1920s with readings, concerts, and lectures. Last year, it was about exile and resistance in National Socialism. Now, from November 14 to 19, it will be about the years after 1945 and until the mid-1960s in East and West - under the title "That a good Germany blooms".

Among the expected guests are actresses Iris Berben, Hannah Herzsprung, and Claudia Michelsen, actors Kida Khodr Ramadan, Peter Kurth, and Albrecht Schuch, Thomas Thieme, Matthias Klink, and Christian Bruckner. "The formats range from revues, readings, and a Poetry Slam to concerts and dance performances, as well as lectures by profiled experts and experts from Literature and Humanities", the organizers announced today.

"The term 'Economic Miracle Years' is almost nostalgically occupied for many", said the Artistic Director of the Festival, film director Joachim Lang. "But of course, this time was anything but carefree. There were war traumas, so much suppression, and so many open wounds." However, it was also the time of the tenacious optimism that seems to have disappeared in the crises today.

The "Spoken Arts Festival" in the 1920s era in Stuttgart, located in Baden-Württemberg, showcased literature and music through readings, concerts, and lectures during its initial rounds.
Despite the economic prosperity of the 1950s and 1960s, often referred to as the "Economic Miracle Years," the "Spoken Arts Festival" in Stuttgart acknowledged the prevalent war traumas, suppression, and open wounds from National Socialism.
As part of the "Spoken Arts Festival" in Stuttgart from November 14 to 19, renowned speakers like Iris Berben and Hanns-Josef Ortheil will discuss the impact of National Socialism on literature and society in the 1920s and post-war era.