Impulse Festival 2025: A cultural exchange between East and West!

Impulse Festival 2025: A cultural exchange between East and West!

A very special event is coming! From June 18th to July 6th, 2025, the Impulse Festival, one of the most important festivals for the independent theater scene in German-speaking countries, will take place in the cities of Mülheim an der Ruhr, Cologne and Düsseldorf. The NRW KULTURsekretariat has been behind this festival for over 30 years, and the new festival edition is being artistically directed by Franziska Werner.

Overall, the art scene can expect a newly designed program that consists of showcase productions selected by a jury each week in each of the three cities and with the main topic “Post-West”. This program area promotes exchange between East and West Germany and offers artists the opportunity to tell their different perspectives and stories.

Program highlights and social topics

The diversity of the pieces shown is impressive: around 500 productions from Germany, Austria and Switzerland were viewed to select the best stories for the festival. Artists address pressing social issues, often linked to personal experiences. The core of the work ranges from Hendrik Quast's reflections on his hair transplant to Simone Dede Ayivi and her team, who examine the causes of precarious housing.

The culinary journeys of discovery that Jaha Koo integrates into his performance and build a bridge between South Korea and Europe are particularly exciting. Claire Cunningham's work addresses themes such as grief and beauty, while Joana Tischkau and Rabih Mroué initiate current debates with their critical views on homeland narratives and freedom of expression.

Impulse meets… and much more

A third program area “Impulse meets…” will include workshops, discursive formats and parties and invites all participants to exchange ideas. From a VR work that opens up digital worlds to a documentary about war trauma by Studio Urbanistan - the range of content shows how important art is as a means of communication in our time.

The events in Düsseldorf take place in the FFT and in the reinraum. A highlight of the festival is the grand finale, which will be celebrated from July 3rd to 6th. The closing party will take place in the reinraum on July 5th from 10:30 p.m. and promises to be a real celebration of encounters and creative exchange.

Anyone interested can find out how the festival works on the website FFT Düsseldorf read where the data protection information is also observed. In addition to the variety of programs, care is also taken to respect the privacy of users and to offer a functional website.

Be there and experience how the Impulse Festival combines the insights and challenges of our time with theater, art and interactive formats!