Künstler*innenhaus Mousonturm

At the limits of understanding

Language is an indiscriminate tool of communication, which not only attempts to solve the struggle for consensus, but also in contrary leads to exclusion and demarcation. At the present, it appears as if the battle for power and interpretation is now more than ever being fought with “corrupted language”, with “alternative facts” and “fake news”. Language is being used to stir up fears and opinions and to dictate political action – propaganda in the age of globalisation and digital media. Almost all conflicting groups currently splitting society have barricaded themselves into echo chambers, while rejecting dialog. How can we manage to resume the path of united decision-making and seek out unprejudiced conciliation, while respecting individual freedom? Or is society already at the precipice of the “limits of understanding”? Under the motto “At the limits of understanding” the Frankfurter Positionen 2019 want to place a focus on the use of language in the context of an increasingly polarised society. Once again, the festival assembles contemporary positions and new works from the fields of drama, performance, choreography, visual arts and composition.