Performance Series: Berlin – Beijing, The Last Crusade, Part 1 by Ole Aselmann

»What we can strive for in the Orient are not other symbols, other metaphysics, other wisdoms (even if these seems very desirable), but rather a difference, a mutation, a revolution in the character of the symbolic systems« (Roland Barthes, Elements of Semiology). Europe needs a new cultural identity. In the fourth century, Constantine the Great led Christianity on a mission to hybridize classical culture and to stabilize his empire. Do we have to look further to the east? Is the »Asian way« the solution? We need new hybrid leader figures: Slotij-Mao-Meese-Wagner-Fluxus! It’s not about spirituality, it’s about global governance.

Dealing with things like Ukranian borscht, American cooking shows with B.A. from the A-Team and nightmares of the Dalai Lama, Ole Aselmann’s travel stories form the groundwork for the Sausage King, which – together with the Dalai Lama, a Cello-GI and culture-keeper soldiers – decorate a central installation/sculpture.

With: Dietrich Kuhlbrodt and Johannes Severin

Duration: 45 minutes

With the friendly support of the Baden-Württemberg Stiftung and the Landeshauptstadt Stuttgart.