Bridging the Gaps, connecting the Dots, Deconfining’s Final Conference at Theater der Welt 2026

From Burkina Faso to Lithuania, from Tanzania to Germany, the Deconfining project has spent the past four years building a dynamic and evolving network of artistic collaboration across continents.

On 26–27 June 2026, this journey will reach a significant milestone in Chemnitz, where the Final Conference — Bridging the Gaps. Connecting the Dots. — will take place as part of the renowned Theater der Welt festival.

This gathering marks the culmination of an ambitious international initiative that has brought together cultural organisations, artists, researchers, and policymakers from across Africa and Europe. Over the course of the project, Deconfining has fostered artistic residencies, co-productions, and critical dialogue, all while navigating an increasingly complex global landscape shaped by mobility restrictions, geopolitical tensions, and structural inequalities.

The conference in Chemnitz offers a vital moment to reflect, exchange, and move forward.

Participants will engage with:

• Artistic outcomes, including films, installations, and collaborative works developed across continents
• Research insights examining cultural policy, mobility, and equitable exchange
• Policy discussions addressing the urgent need for more inclusive and sustainable frameworks for artistic cooperation

At its core, Bridging the Gaps. Connecting the Dots. is not only about looking back — it is about reimagining the future of cross-continental collaboration. It creates space for dialogue between practitioners and decision-makers, while amplifying voices that have historically faced barriers to participation.

Taking place within Theater der Welt, one of Germany’s leading international theatre festivals, the conference is embedded in a wider cultural context that celebrates global artistic exchange. For several weeks, Chemnitz will become a meeting point for artists and audiences from around the world — a fitting setting for Deconfining’s final act.

As the project concludes, the conversations, networks, and ideas it has generated continue to expand. The connections built between partners — from West, East, and Southern Africa to Central and Eastern Europe — form the foundation for future collaboration.

The dots are not only being connected.
They are becoming a map for what comes next.

Organised by: Deconfining, ITI,  and GI.

In Cooperation with: Theater der Welt.

Funded by: EU, KSL, BKM.