A study on friendship
We want them. We need them. We all like them: friends.
Studies repeatedly show that loneliness is bad for us; it can even make us ill. But why is it sometimes so complicated to find friends, avoid arguments with them, or make up again? How do we know if someone is our friend? And how many friends do we actually need? To find out, we want to conduct a study on friendship. It begins with the question that adults often advise children to ask, but rarely ask themselves: Can I play too?
The friendship research takes place in workshops in kindergartens and schools, followed by a theater performance. While many other social relationships have rituals and celebrations – like weddings or family gatherings – friendship is often overlooked. The theater performances are celebrations of friendship. We want to create decorations, games, and music, and perhaps we'll even manage to forge the longest friendship bond in the world! And who knows – maybe we'll go home with some new friendships.
Workshops on request for preschool classes, primary school and lower secondary school from February 2026
By Esther Pilkington with Brenda Alaís, Matthias Anton, Daniel Ladnar, Kerstin Oppermann and many others.
Funded by the Hamburg Authority for Culture and Media and the Performing Arts Fund with funds from the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and Media.
