They cross divides in the most literal sense and come close at the edge of the orchestra pit. The dancers of Staatsballett Berlin in Wunderkammer, that is. The premiere of Spanish choreographer Marcos Morau took place at the end of October 2025, and you can see the piece again at the end of November 2025 and then in April 2026. A “cabinet of curiosities” is often described as a collection full of eclectic objects, a place to store things that may never have belonged together yet can still be placed side by side. Most of all, a wunderkammer is a place of wonder, where the eye wanders and constantly discovers something new. This is exactly the feeling created by Wunderkammer, the work currently presented by Staatsballett Berlin. An accordion player, stumbling forward alone, with abstract wave imagery and a costume hinting at the 1920s, opens the piece. Wunderkammer does not look nostalgically to the past. It takes the audience on an eclectic, retro-futuristic journey. The accordion does not remain alone for long: the company circles the musician while abstracted harmonicas release smoke as scenic elements and transform the stage of the Schiller Theater into a mystical setting.
The piece is not only danced but also sung, which gives it a wide musical range. The compositions by Clara Aguilar and Ben Meerwein create a sound world that constantly recombines itself: accordion timbres, electronic beats, organ sounds. The atmosphere shifts between theatrical, sacred, and operatic. Max Glaenzel’s stage design uses only a few central elements, yet they create spaces that move between the theater foyer, dance studio, and art installation. The company carries the audience for 70 minutes with great energy and precision. Every single performer would deserve to be named, though that would go beyond the scope of this text. Among them is Leroy Mokgatle, recently awarded Best Dance Performer at this year’s German Theater Prize “Der Faust” for the role of Puck in A Midsummer Night’s Dream. When you step out of the wunderkammer and into the light of the foyer, you return to the real world with images and sounds still resonating.
Text: Nina Trippel / Photos: Marcos Morau
Komische Oper Berlin, Bismarckstr.110, 10625 Berlin–Charlottenburg; map
Wunderkammer
@staatsballettberlin
