Magazine & News • brut

A rectangular ceiling light glows in a dark room. Behind the frosted cover, several shadows of moth-like or insect-like shapes are visible. The reduced image focuses on light, shadow and the delicate outlines of the small bodies.

What kind of world are we trying to build?

Sunggu Hong in conversation with brut dramaturge Katrin Brehm about the work Raised by the Chronic; Beyond, the Moth

„We design these systems and constantly try to make them fit into the world we have created. We are raising them. But what is important is that they are also raising us.“

A performing person dressed in black stands in a grand interior space in front of a seated audience. They hold a long metal rod with both hands, with a smartphone attached to it; a small object is positioned directly in front of their mouth. Microphones on stands are visible to the left, while columns, stone walls and audience members can be seen in the background. The scene appears like a focused performance situation connecting body, voice, technology and object.

Fragile Timing, Pointed Play: On the Practice of Sunggu Hong

A text by Freda Fiala

Sunggu Hong’s performance practice begins where the human stops pretending to be the main character. His worlds are full of animal doubles, robotic companions, cardboard signs, plants – artificial limbs of attention that seem to have migrated from a toy shop, a botanical archive, a colonial greenhouse, and a haunted flat share all at once. They are cute, but never harmless; they offer play, but no absolution. Working between installation, live performance, and performative experiment, Hong lures us into environments where togetherness is a sticky business of dependency, projection, misrecognition, care, extraction, and the strange labor of becoming legible to another being.

Open Call: Choreographic Platform Austria 2027

CPA is looking for current dance and performance projects for its next edition from 18 to 20 November 2027. Submission deadline: 15 November 2026

Nestroy nominations for DARUM (Victoria Halper and Kai Krösche) and Myassa Kraitt

We are delighted to announce two nominations for the 2026 Nestroy Prize: DARUM in the category Best Direction and Myassa Kraitt for the ORF III Audience Prize. The duo DARUM (Victoria Halper and Kai Krösche) have been nominated for Best Direction for their brut co-production Auflösung (which premiered in April 2026 at brut Wien). Furthermore, from 09 to 20 November, you can vote for Myassa Kraitt – also known as KDM Königin der Macht – for the Nestroy ORF III Audience Prize. She last appeared at brut in 2024 with the world premiere of The Last Feminist. The production will return for a revival in 2027. We’re keeping our fingers crossed!

The image shows three people in a dynamic dance scene on stage. On the left, a person is seen from behind wearing a light-coloured multicoloured T-shirt and a checked costume piece with ruffles. In the centre, a person in a patterned top and layered checked skirt raises one arm. On the right, another person leans backwards with their arms raised. The stage is illuminated in strong turquoise and red light. Technical stage elements and another person at a console are visible in the background. Partially visible text appears on the T-shirt on the left.

Joy, grief, and resistance as radical practices

Mzamo Nondlwana in conversation with brut dramaturge Hanna Steinmair about the work Waiting for Fall

‘The most challenging yet rewarding moment is the point where the audience shifts from watching to moving with us.’

The image shows a darkened room with a large, soft blue installation in the foreground. The textile form is strongly curved and resembles a large cushion or an organic landscape. In the background, a rectangular projection shows a blurred scene. Additional blue textile material hangs from the ceiling. The entire room is immersed in deep blue light. There is no text in the image.

Bodies, water, resistance

Amanda Piña in conversation with brut dramaturge Hanna Steinmair about her work Ancient Future Climate Bodies

‘I am inspired by the possibility of disrupting the narratives that allow the extraction and depletion of what the West calls “natural resources”, which is at the core of what we call Climate Change.’

Open Call: Huggy Bears 2027

Bears in the Park is seeking Viennese artists and collectives working in the fields of performance, dance and transdisciplinary art for the Huggy Bears Supporting Program 2027. The programme supports three to four projects from the initial idea through to their stage premiere, offering artistic, dramaturgical, technical, administrative and financial support.Deadline for applications: 10 November 2026

Stefanie Sourial receives the 2026 Outstanding Artist Award

We would like to offer our warmest congratulations to Stefanie Sourial on winning the 2026 Outstanding Artist Award in the category Performing Arts! With this award, the Federal Ministry for Housing, Art, Culture, Media and Sport recognises her long-standing artistic practice spanning theatre, performance, cabaret and music, as well as her socially and politically engaged work. Stefanie Sourial has had close ties with brut for many years and was most recently seen at brut in January 2026 with FLASHMOB. Congratulations from the bottom of our hearts!

Elisabeth Bakambamba Tambwe wins the 2026 Austrian Art Prize

We would like to offer our warmest congratulations to Elisabeth Bakambamba Tambwe on winning the 2026 Austrian Art Prize in the category of media art! With this prize, the Federal Ministry of Housing, Art, Culture, Media and Sport honours her extensive body of work, in which she combines performance, film and sound with installative, sculptural and discursive approaches. Elisabeth Bakambamba Tambwe is featured in the current brut season with a shared residency of HIDING THIS PALE OBJECT OF DESIRE, A PLEASURE. Congratulations from the bottom of our hearts!

New season, new district. Real. Raw. Yellow.

For the 2026/27 season, brut is getting a new visual identity, developed in collaboration with the design studio SIRENE.

Front view of a historic brick building with yellow façade details under a clear blue sky. Above the main entrance, large letters read “ZENTRALBANK”, with “Zweigstelle St. Marx” written below. The façade features tall arched windows, decorative columns, crests and a small round window in the gable. A metal railing, raised terrace and several barred windows are visible in front of the entrance. Parts of the façade appear weathered, with visible patches of plaster and areas in need of renovation.

Welcome to 1030!

There is a building. Still empty. It stands in the 3rd district, waiting to become a place. It has its own history, still to be discovered. It has space for experiences and exchanges, still to be created. Together.

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