Katharina Mevissen / Natascha Gangl & Christian Dierstein / The Singing Hands Choir — A Matinee Blending Spoken and Sign Language
Katharina Mevissen: Speaking Out. A Speech
On the evening of May 12, 2024, after delivering her acceptance speech for the Droste Award at the New Palace in Meersburg, Katharina Mevissen makes a startling discovery: At the side entrance of the building, she reads on a plaque about the uses of the Episcopal Baroque Residence on Lake Constance, including as a “Fräulein Institute, National Socialist Reich Finance School, and institution for the deaf and mute.” Taking the outdated term “institute for the deaf and mute” as her starting point, Mevissen begins researching the institution, which was “relocated” several times over the course of its 72-year history. In the state archives, she finds 33 entries for the Freiburg location and 57 for Karlsruhe: “Issues that need to be brought to light… If I had written a different speech, would I have known about this sooner? I believe so.” This unprecedented speech is delivered at the conclusion of the 40th Freiburg Literary Forum and marks the kickoff of the Literaturhaus’s new series “Laut werden” (Speaking Out).
Who speaks, who is heard, to whom do we give our voice? Which narratives prevail, which stories remain untold, how do we communicate? Questions of hearing and not hearing reveal the seams of our democracy—political mechanisms of power and vulnerability, resistance and participation. A morning event for hearing and Deaf audiences, interpreted into German Sign Language by Barbara Herold and Yvonne Weichsel.
Natascha Gangl, Christian Dierstein: “Da Sta”
Reading concert
The title of Natascha Gangl’s text “Da Sta,” with which she won the Ingeborg Bachmann Prize in Klagenfurt in 2025, means “the stone” in southeastern Styrian and “yes, they are” in Slovenian. In her homeland of Styria, the borders of Austria, Hungary, and Slovenia converge—and with them, three languages. The people and their words have become inscribed in the ground; they literally rise up as soon as someone steps on it and fill the space, provided one listens closely. Just as Natascha Gangl does in her acoustic investigation, which, with linguistic virtuosity, traces the traces of a Nazi crime committed here toward the end of World War II.
The narrator investigates the mystery of a privately erected memorial stone in the forest, poses questions about remembering and forgetting, works with field recordings and interviews—and, by breaking the silence, also breaks open the sound of language. For Gangl, listening, writing, and speaking form a single unity. Her texts combine dialect, multilingualism, and rhythmic linguistic composition to create acoustic narrative spaces; her reading performances are an experience. Today, this multifaceted literature takes on a new sonic dimension through her collaboration with percussionist Christian Dierstein (Ensemble Recherche).
Chorus of Singing Hands
Closing Concert
To conclude the 40th Literature Talk, we celebrate the fusion of choral music and sign poetry, an art form of sign language. Since 2023, the inclusive Chorus of Singing Hands has been captivating audiences with its performances and innovative approach: Through an intensive artistic process, original and well-known pieces are adapted into multilingual arrangements. The ensemble, composed of deaf and hearing members, sings both in spoken language and in sign language. A unique dialogue between performers and audience emerges from words and gestures in motion.
At the Literaturhaus, works by Ludwig van Beethoven meet compositions by Johann Sebastian Bach, before the matinee concludes with a medley of folk songs and a wordplay piece by the Finnish composer Einojuhani Rautavaara. Artistic Direction: Sophia Kirstein (choir director) and Stephanie Mündel-Möhr (sign language poetry).
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Photos: Katharina Mevissen, Maischa Souaga, Natascha Gangl, Daniel Sostaric, Christian Dierstein, Peter Gwiazda, Chor der Singenden Hände, Leif Möhr,
Sponsors: City of Freiburg Cultural Office, Baden-Württemberg Ministry of Science, Research, and the Arts, Sparkasse Freiburg-Nördlicher Breisgau, Guzzoni-Federer Foundation, Deutsche Pfandbriefbank
Cooperation Partners: Theater in the Marienbad, jos fritz Bookstore
Cultural Partner: SWR Kultur
Date: November 8, 2026, 11:00 a.m.–1:00 p.m.
Location: Literaturhaus Freiburg, Bertoldstraße 17
Admission: 11/7 euros
Literary Discussion
Literaturhaus
