ZUKUNf/sT — Ukrainian Festival at HfS Ernst Busch
Festival culmination of the Kharkiv Theatre Exile Project at HfS Ernst Busch
About ZUKUNf/sT
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Theatre from Kharkiv in Berlin Exile
Since the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine in February 2022, thousands of Ukrainian artists have been living in European exile. The Ernst Busch University of Performing Arts has responded with a specific funding program: Theaterakademie Charkiv @ HfS Ernst Busch. For two years, graduates and students from the Kharkiv Theatre University have worked with Berlin-based instructors on plays, performances, and research. ZUKUNf/sT is the festival-format culmination of this program.
Seven Forms of Performance, One Word
The festival title is a graphic design: ZUKUNf/sT — Future with the capital letters f, s, T woven in. Programmatically, the festival opens up seven fields: Theatre, digital performance, music, exhibition, poetry, discussion, and food. Confirmed productions include Follow the Sound of My Voice! / Іди на мій голос! (concert with music, voices, poetry), Running Without Stopping (studio production based on texts by Ukrainian author Serhiy Zhadan), and UtopiA (immersive miniatures with a subsequent audience discussion).
District Mitte and Ernst Busch
The Ernst Busch University of Performing Arts has been headquartered at Zinnowitzer Straße in the Mitte district since 2019, in a new building directly at the Nordbahnhof S-Bahn station. The UNTEN venue is the rehearsal stage in the basement, with an experimental black-box atmosphere. Festival partners include the association Theater Ensemble Wheels e.V. and UCC Ukrainian Cultural Community, both Berlin-based diaspora initiatives. The festival is funded by the Stiftung Innovation in der Hochschullehre.
ZUKUNf/sT — edition 2026
The 2026 festival will showcase the results of the two-year Theaterakademie Charkiv cooperation. Participants include Kharkiv graduates from Ukraine and the global diaspora, as well as Berlin instructors and students. Partner organizations Theater Ensemble Wheels e.V. and UCC Ukrainian Cultural Community contribute their diaspora networks. The program includes concerts, studio productions, immersive miniatures, exhibitions, and gastronomic formats from Ukrainian tradition.
Programme ZUKUNf/sT 2026
The ZUKUNf/sT 2026 festival will take place at the UNTEN venue of HfS Ernst Busch, Zinnowitzer Straße 11, 10115 Berlin-Mitte. The exact festival days will be announced by the organizer in good time on hfs-berlin.de — public advance sales traditionally begin ten days before the first performance.
Confirmed Productions
- Follow the Sound of My Voice! / Іди на мій голос! — Concert with music, voices, and poetry from the Ukrainian exile
- Running Without Stopping — Studio production based on texts by Serhiy Zhadan, the most prominent contemporary Ukrainian author
- UtopiA — Immersive miniatures with a subsequent audience discussion
Seven Program Fields
- Theatre (Studio productions with Kharkiv graduates)
- Digital Performance
- Music (Concerts and performances)
- Exhibition (Visual arts from the Ukrainian exile scene)
- Poetry (Readings and performance readings)
- Discussion (Panels on the situation of Ukrainian culture during the war and in exile)
- Food (Gastronomic contributions from Ukrainian tradition)
Project and Funding
The festival concludes the project Theaterakademie Charkiv @ HfS Ernst Busch — a two-year funding for Kharkiv theatre professionals in Berlin exile. Partners: Theater Ensemble Wheels e.V. and UCC Ukrainian Cultural Community (Berlin diaspora associations). Funding: Stiftung Innovation in der Hochschullehre.
Highlights ZUKUNf/sT 2026
- Concluding festival of the two-year Kharkiv-Berlin Theatre Project
- Confirmed production Follow the Sound of My Voice! with music and poetry
- Studio production based on texts by Serhiy Zhadan
- Seven program fields from theatre to food
- Partner associations: Theater Ensemble Wheels and UCC Ukrainian Cultural Community
Prices ZUKUNf/sT 2026
Tickets are available via hfs-berlin.de. Public advance sales begin ten days before the first performance. As HfS is a state university, ticket prices are usually affordable, with concessions available for students and seniors.
Practical information — ZUKUNf/sT
Getting There
S-Bahn S1/S2/S25 to Nordbahnhof — five minutes on foot. Tram M8/M10 to Nordbahnhof. The university is located in the center of Berlin-Mitte, within walking distance of the main train station.
Tickets
Public advance sales begin ten days before the first performance. Tickets are available via hfs-berlin.de. Exact dates for 2026 will be communicated in advance.
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Travel to this festival
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Where it takes place ZUKUNf/sT
HfS Ernst Busch UNTEN
Zinnowitzer Straße 11, 10115 Berlin