Design: Stegmeyer Fischer Creative Studio
Feb 12, 2026
Golschan Ahmad Haschemi Receives the Marie Zimmermann Fellowship for Dramaturgy 2026
Golschan Ahmad Haschemi. Foto: GAH
Established in 2008 by Friedrich Schirmer, the Marie Zimmermann Fellowship for Dramaturgy 2026 has been awarded to dramaturg, performer, and author Golschan Ahmad Haschemi. The jury’s decision was unanimous.
In memory of the dramaturg and festival director Marie Zimmermann, who passed away in 2007, Friedrich Schirmer, former artistic director of the Deutsches Schauspielhaus in Hamburg, established a fellowship in April 2008 to support an emerging dramaturg from the German-speaking theater scene. The fellowship is organized and awarded by the Akademie Schloss Solitude. Since 2019, the Marie Zimmermann Fellowship for Dramaturgy has been funded by the Ministry of Science, Research, and the Arts of Baden-Württemberg.
The fellowship is aimed at dramaturgs from the German-speaking region and is unique within the landscape of artist-in-residence programs. It includes prize money of €5,000 and a two-month residency in a furnished live/work studio at the Akademie Schloss Solitude.
This year, once again, the fellowship attracted a large number of outstanding applications from across the German-speaking region. The jury consisted of Jeffrey Döring (independent project manager and director), Anna Gubiani (chief dramaturg at the Württembergische Landesbühne, Esslingen), Carolin Hochleichter (dramaturg and program curator at the Stiftung Humboldt Forum, Berlin), and Anne Fleckstein (director of the Akademie Schloss Solitude).
The jury unanimously selected dramaturg, author, and performer Golschan Ahmad Haschemi (born 1985). Golschan Ahmad Haschemi studied cultural studies and aesthetic practice in Hildesheim as well as at the ESMAE School of Music and Performing Arts in Porto. Her work engages the intersections of artistic, political, and academic discourse, developing critical perspectives and practices that address structures of power. As an independent dramaturg, she is active in the collectives AHH (Ahmad Haschemi/Hourmazdi) and donna’s gym, and has worked with the Staatstheater Hannover and Ballhaus Ost, Berlin, among others. She has taught at the University of Hildesheim and Zurich University of the Arts. With formats such as the “Toolbox – Perspectives and Discourses on Anti-Discriminatory Theater,” she develops discursive formats that address conditions of production and reception while bringing aesthetic practice into dialogue with institutional reflection.
In its statement on awarding the fellowship to Golschan Ahmad Haschemi, the jury writes:
»How do language and the body interact in laughter? When does stand-up comedy unfold its critical potential by ›punching up‹? And when does it do the exact opposite by targeting socially disadvantaged groups? How can political developments and power relations be read in stand-up shows?
In her dramaturgical practice, dramaturg, performer, and author Golschan Ahmad Haschemi engages precisely these questions. She understands dramaturgy as part of a shared artistic and social process. Accordingly, she consistently realizes her work within artistic collectives. In constellations such as Techno Candy and AHH (Ahmad Haschemi/Hourmazdi), Golschan Ahmad Haschemi develops a dramaturgy closely connected to social and anti-discrimination concerns. Her work moves at the intersections of art, political education, and theoretical reflection. In her practice, dramaturgy becomes tangible as a space of friction, collective reflection, and resonance – and thus as an essential component of artistic processes.
As part of the Marie Zimmermann Fellowship for Dramaturgy, Golschan Ahmad Haschemi will examine humor and stand-up comedy for their subversive potential. In exchange with the resident artists at the Akademie Schloss Solitude, she will further develop her research question and expand her understanding of dramaturgy as a collective, process-based mode of working. At a time of rising right-wing populist tendencies and increasing financial pressure on the arts, humor – as a deeply human quality, as a theatrical device, and as a critically political tool – is more important than ever.
The jury recognizes Golschan Ahmad Haschemi as a dramaturg who takes one of the oldest techniques of theater – humor – and redefines it within a contemporary, collective, and anti-discriminatory practice.
We warmly congratulate Golschan Ahmad Haschemi on receiving the Marie Zimmermann Fellowship for Dramaturgy 2026.«