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Through an open window with a flower box, the view leads into a small room where two figures are standing or sitting. Outside, a wooden fence borders a field beneath a low sun on the horizon. The red brick house, the curtains and the warm light create a rural, almost idyllic atmosphere, slightly unsettled by the artificial-looking figures. The scene combines domestic intimacy with a constructed virtual landscape.
DARUM (Victoria Halper & Kai Krösche) – Auflösung
© DARUM

News

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

16.10.2026

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!

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Artists

DARUM (Victoria Halper & Kai Krösche)

DARUM, co-headed by directors Victoria Halper and Kai Krösche, was established in 2019 and creates performances, installations, films and works of audio, video and media art, tackling the issues that tend to keep us awake at night. DARUM’s performances were nominated for the NESTROY theatre prize four times and won it twice (in 2023 and 2025). Their virtual reality performance [EOL]. End of Life was invited to the Berlin Theatertreffen as one of the ten most remarkable productions of 2024, to the Impulse Theater Festival, to Politik im freien Theater and numerous other renowned festivals; and it will continue touring. In 2025, Victoria Halper and Kai Krösche received the Austrian Outstanding Artist Award in the performing arts category for their work in the context of DARUM.

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Myassa Kraitt

Myassa Kraitt is a performance artist, rapper, director and social anthropologist. Her work deals with direct and indirect forms of violence, including epistemicides, colonialism, patriarchy and necropolitics as well as anti-discriminatory artistic practices. In her multi-disciplinary, performative rap act called KDM – Königin der Macht, she combines the genres of rap music and performance to open queer-feminist and anti-/de-colonial debates and lectures on stages for music.

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Two people pose against a green background. One is seated on a red chair, while the other stands beside them. There is no text in the image.
DARUM (Victoria Halper & Kai Krösche)
© Apollonia Theresa Bitzan
At a large worktable in a room that feels improvised and workshop-like, a person with curly grey hair leans over tools, cables and technical equipment. Opposite, a second person with their back to the camera appears seated or standing close by, listening. On the table are VR headsets, controllers, cables, tape and other components. In the background, dark fabrics and translucent plastic sheets hang in front of blue-lit windows.
DARUM (Victoria Halper & Kai Krösche) – Auflösung
© Christine Miess
In a hall that feels underground, a stop is marked by the signs “AUTOBUS HALTESTELLE” and “STRASSENBAHN HALTESTELLE”. Beside it, a human figure leans casually against an illuminated advertising panel, while on the left a stylised purple figure protrudes from the shelter. In the background there is a staircase, a small pool or fountain, and heavy architectural elements. The scene feels like a strange, dreamlike mixture of public transport and an artificial underworld.
DARUM (Victoria Halper & Kai Krösche) – Auflösung
© DARUM
A view through several narrow openings into a bright walk-through interior. On the right, a person in a dark sleeveless outfit stands in a recessed space, shown in side profile with light falling across the face, one hand resting thoughtfully at the chin. On the wall beside them hangs a sheet of text headed “ORIENTIERUNG & STRUKTUR”, and above it a small red wall light is glowing. On the left, shelves with small objects and a long hanging pendulum or weight can be seen.
DARUM (Victoria Halper & Kai Krösche) – Auflösung
© Christine Miess
A narrow corridor is crossed with black-and-yellow hazard tape, as though access has been blocked or temporarily secured. Doors with red indicator lights are visible on either side, and the walls show signs of damp or wear. In the centre, the view again leads to a glass door and a repeating corridor beyond. The scene suggests an abandoned or damaged institutional interior.
DARUM (Victoria Halper & Kai Krösche) – Auflösung
© DARUM
The image shows a person wearing a VR headset and headphones in a simply furnished room. They are holding a controller and standing beside an unmade bed with white blankets and pillows. A support handle hangs above the bed, and a cross is mounted on the wall. There is no text in the image.
DARUM (Victoria Halper & Kai Krösche) – Auflösung
© Christine Miess

About Auflösung

In Auflösung (‘Dissolution’), Victoria Halper and Kai Krösche send their audiences out into a constantly changing, decaying architecture. This journey into darkness at the intersection of performance and installation uses the means of immersion and virtual/mixed reality to find out what happens when we are more than ever in need of orientation and help but there’s nobody there to hold our hand. Auflösung is an immersive confrontation with what society keeps ignoring, which is that sooner or later, we will all reach a point where we cannot make it alone anymore and rely on support.

 

Jury's statement

Sonja Harter, a member of the Nestroy jury, explains the decision to nominate the production as follows:
“In Auflösung, the directing duo Victoria Halper and Kai Krösche (DARUM) once again demonstrate their exceptional standing in contemporary, immersive theatre, following their highly successful production [EOL], which was awarded a NESTROY Special Prize. At the heart of Auslöschung lies the question of the future of ageing: what happens when familiar structures let you down and wellknown paths no longer exist? Equipped with VR headsets, the audience is spellbound as they follow a dystopian journey through a virtually generated care home, where perspectives shift ceaselessly and the residents are ultimately sent on virtual journeys. With Auflösung, the duo has once again created an impressive VR piece that surprises with its technical sophistication and illustrates just how rapidly technology is developing – and what it makes possible.”

The image shows several people on a dimly lit stage. In the centre, one person sings into a microphone while others move in the background. Warm backlighting creates long shadows across the floor.
Myassa Kraitt – The Last Feminist
© Hanna Fasching
The image shows four people on stage. In the foreground, one person sings into a microphone while three others stand and move behind them in powerful poses.
Myassa Kraitt – The Last Feminist
© Hanna Fasching
The image shows eight people lined up on stage. The person in the foreground holds a microphone, while the others stand spaced out behind them. The scene is dark and warmly backlit.
Myassa Kraitt – The Last Feminist
© Hanna Fasching
The image shows three people in a dynamic stage scene. In the foreground, a person dances in black clothing and a light-coloured corset, while two other people move beside them in dark and patterned costumes.
Myassa Kraitt – The Last Feminist
© Hanna Fasching
The image shows a close-up of a person on stage. They wear a light-coloured corset, black clothing and striking jewellery. Strong backlighting creates bright light flares across the image.
Myassa Kraitt – The Last Feminist
© Hanna Fasching

VOTE FOR MYASSA KRAITT

Recommendation

  • Artists

DARUM (Victoria Halper & Kai Krösche)

DARUM, co-headed by directors Victoria Halper and Kai Krösche, was established in 2019 and creates performances, installations, films and works of audio, video and media art, tackling the issues that tend to keep us awake at night. DARUM’s performances were nominated for the NESTROY theatre prize four times and won it twice (in 2023 and 2025). Their virtual reality performance [EOL]. End of Life was invited to the Berlin Theatertreffen as one of the ten most remarkable productions of 2024, to the Impulse Theater Festival, to Politik im freien Theater and numerous other renowned festivals; and it will continue touring. In 2025, Victoria Halper and Kai Krösche received the Austrian Outstanding Artist Award in the performing arts category for their work in the context of DARUM.
  • Artists

Myassa Kraitt

Myassa Kraitt is a performance artist, rapper, director and social anthropologist. Her work deals with direct and indirect forms of violence, including epistemicides, colonialism, patriarchy and necropolitics as well as anti-discriminatory artistic practices. In her multi-disciplinary, performative rap act called KDM – Königin der Macht, she combines the genres of rap music and performance to open queer-feminist and anti-/de-colonial debates and lectures on stages for music.
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