b12 Berlin Festival for Contemporary Dance: Week 1 Diary
b12 Festival for Contemporary Dance and Performance Art (officially stylized in all lowercase) is an annual dance festival every July in Berlin, Germany. A training ground for professional-level dancers, the Festival offers more than 70+ research workshops, along with somatic, yoga, and outreach classes; free improv sessions; performance projects; and more. Their slogan is, “Research or die.”
I attended b12 from July 1 - 28, 2024.
Dancers come from all over the world to attend b12. It’s one of the most comprehensive dance festivals in the world. But what is it actually like? From the head and experience of an extroverted-introvert dance artist from Canada, solo in Berlin, here’s my story:
Week 1: July 1 - 6, 2024.
June 29 — Flight to Berlin! 9 and 1/2 hours.
June 30 — Arrived in Berlin. Tired, sleepy, eyes supremely dry. There’s just no good way to sleep in an economy seat.
As soon as I had signal, I saw an email saying my first b12 course starting tomorrow is cancelled! That means a whole week of no plans before my next course. (╥﹏╥)
Spent the whole train ride to the city centre in a state of anxiety because I forgot to buy my ticket beforehand. Then, when I thought I could just buy it online, the Wifi failed on me, and there was no data reach on the moving train. Thank goodness no one checked me this time.
Luckily, I was able to check in early to my hostel, so at least I had a good 3-hour nap.
Cue: frantically searching up drop-in dance classes to make up for the lost training.
