Falling asleep is among the most solitary and universal human experiences. It marks the moment we relinquish daytime consciousness and its illusion of control, allowing ourselves to drift into something shadowy and unknown. Thoughts become fluid, boundaries blur, and inner images rearrange themselves through a web of associations. The space between wakefulness and sleep is a threshold, where multiple states of consciousness intermingle and perception subtly shifts.
Across cultures and eras, people have marked transitions through rituals – weddings, funerals, or religious rites that signal the passage from childhood to youth. In daily life, these rituals appear as evening habits: storytelling, bedtime reading, or singing lullabies to children. Contemporary sleep research likewise recommends fixed routines to help ease the transition into sleep, especially for those struggling with insomnia.
For "Night Shifts 6", Hamburg-based artists Anja Dietmann and Gesa Troch present a collective evening ritual in a public space with their performance "Sky of Sheets," exploring themes of transformation and passage. Gesa Troch’s textile work will be brought to life together with the audience, constantly shifting between forms – intimate bedding, a protective cave, or a monumental celestial canopy. These transformations create ever-new spaces for the audience and serve as stages for Anja Dietmann’s poetic texts and songs, which artfully blend the bizarre and the mundane. Berlin-based artist Nschotschi Haslinger enriches the evening with a performative intervention.
On Saturday, October 10th at 6:30 PM, we will gather at sunset at the Königstraße S-Bahn station (Behnstraße exit). There, the audience will be welcomed by the three night watchwomen – Rosanna Graf, Lisa Klosterkötter, and Special Guest Philipp Joy Reinhardt.
