Und es ward Licht: KI-täuschend-echt? Theatre & Stage

AI takes over many tasks for us: writing texts, searching for content, and even generating images. This development raises ethical, social, and philosophical questions: What can I believe? Who has sovereignty over the image of our world? What is true, what is beautiful—and what is normal? At a time when artificial intelligence is beginning to simulate reality, the distinction between real and created is becoming increasingly blurred. What does this mean for our approach to truth and trust? Where do we situate AI—in a world of certainties or one of constant questioning? What are the effects of artificial intelligence on our viewing habits and values? What does it mean when algorithms define beauty or imitate reality? What responsibility do we bear as users and designers of these new tools? Karoline and Jan Gericke, freelance creatives and owners of Awed Studio, reflect on these questions with a view to the AI images they generated for this evening on the topic of Light in the Dark. In interplay, Katrin Bethge's overhead projections and John Eckhardt's turntables create an archaic, synesthetic adventure of light and sound. Using light-refracting objects, liquids, and everyday materials directly on the surface of the projector, Katrin Bethge creates cosmic and microscopic spaces of light. John Eckhardt's contemplative DJ sets create spectral soundscapes that, pulsating with powerful bass, interweave into surprising narratives. A discussion will follow with Karoline and Jan Gericke, Katrin Bethge, John Eckhardt, Prof. Dr. Christian Schwanenberger, senior scientist at DESY and professor at the University of Hamburg, and Pastor Frank Engelbrecht.