Planetarische Bauern

Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, several members of the Russian collective Chto Delat (‘What is to be done?’, founded in St. Petersburg in 2003) emigrated to Germany, where they established the School of Emergencies – a transdisciplinary educational initiative and platform for dialogue. The installation they created for Planetary Peasants centres on the musical fairy tale Songs of Hope and Despair. During a performance in Hettstedt’s market square, the magician Manuel Muerte transforms a group of Russian migrants into figures from Werner Tübke’s monumental Peasants’ War panorama Early Bourgeois Revolution in Germany and sends them off on a perilous journey. Rainer Werner Fassbinder’s 1970 film The Niklashausen Journey, based on historical events in 1476, also tells the story of a preacher calling for social uprising. Chto Delat react to key scenes in the film with shadow interventions. Hope and despair, revolution and defeat: can miracles save us from today’s hopeless situation?