The Gessnerallee is a venue for theatre, dance, performance, music and community projects. As a co-producer of selected projects and as a partner for local and global productions, the Gessnerallee is one of the largest stages for the independent performative arts in Switzerland.
The Gessnerallee is a meeting place for the diverse urban society. The artistic programme on the stages, in the studios, in the urban space or even in the bar of Stall 6 shows experimental, especially contemporary art forms and explores current social issues. The Gessnerallee focuses on transdisciplinary projects that question classical modes of production.
The Gessnerallee works in partnership with the artists and actors who produce in the venue. It communicates its resources and expectations transparently and, conversely, asks for the needs of its counterparts. The Gessnerallee is a place where the organisational structure and the artistic, social themes that are negotiated on the stage develop together and influence each other. We do not treat diversity, inclusion and the critique of racism merely as "topics" - they are the leitmotif and method of action. For the Gessnerallee, creating equality between the people working here does not mean assuming that everyone has the same prerequisites. We respond to the initial situation of artists, actors and staff in order to create equality. Sustainability and longevity are important to us in these relationships. Since we have a power-critical attitude within the institution, the Gessnerallee team organises itself in collective processes and makes decisions together and from multiple perspectives.
A learning organisation sometimes lags behind its intellectual aspirations in its actions: the size of the operation, framework conditions as a public institution and alternative forms of collaboration challenge the processes of change. We therefore shift the horizon for our work far ahead. At the Gessnerallee, the present is put to the test and trained for the future.
The Gessnerallee is on its way to becoming a theatre that functions like its mascot, an octopus - an organism with several hearts, eight legs and an amazing ability to learn. The lack of a skeleton gives the octopus great mobility and flexibility. Although the tentacles originate from a centre, they can also move independently.
