Arild Vange was born in 1955 and is a poet, performance artist and translator. In the early 1980s he performed as a singer in the punk and new wave movements. Vange spent several years living in Germany, and in 2005 he was awarded a grant to live and work in the Villa Waldberta. From 2008 to 2013, he lived in the writer’s residence in the city of Trondheim. Vange has published several novels and books of poetry. In 2011, with support from the Norwegian government, he and the Scottish guitarist Neil Davidson founded the improvisational group DVELL. Arild Vange was part of different artist in residence programs.
Felix Forsbach, born in 1985, is a poet and performer in das responsorium. He has been performing improvisational theatre since 2002, first in Bonn and later in Bamberg where he founded the “Ensemble Ernst von Leben” in 2014. As part of the Künstlerkollektiv INGE, he has created performances, curated exhibitions and organised poetry readings and art shows in Bamberg, Würzburg and Innsbruck. He has dedicated his numerous university teaching assignments to the exploration and presentation of postdramatic theatre, linguistic criticism and the connection between literature and painting. He is currently pursuing a doctorate in modern German literature at the University of Bamberg. His academic work explores the connection between photography and the philosophy of language.
Olga Seehafer, born in 1986, is an independent actor and artist. She is a founding member of both the improvisational theatre group “Ensemble Ernst von Leben” and the “TiG – Theater im Gärtnerviertel” in Bamberg. Since 2013, she has taught regular seminars on performance at the University of Bamberg.As a performance artist, she has received support from groups including the Berufsverband Bildender Künstler und Künstlerinnen Coburg, the International House of Artists Villa Concordia, and the Kunstverein Bamberg – most recently for the exhibition “Sagen und Zeigen”. She has been a volunteer exhibit curator with “kontakt – Das Kulturprojekt” since 2013.
Nikolaus Durst, born in 1989, contributes as a guitarist to the musical component of das responsorium. In 2009, he and fellow musicians from his home town of Kempten formed the Blues Brothers Tribute Band, a group with which he performed extensively – even appearing at the 2012 Kemptener Jazz Frühling. He moved to Bamberg in 2010 and currently plays bass and guitar in the bands “Brotmüller”, “Jazzküche” and “Dr. Umwuchts Tanzpalast”. Together with the Slovenian clarinettist and composer Uros Rojko, he participated in the 2015 Tag der Performance in Bamberg. Since 2015, he has played guitar in the University of Bamberg’s Jazz Combo and Uni Big Band under the direction of Markus Schieferdecker.
David Grimm, born in 1989, is an independent artist, graphic designer and set designer. As a performer, he participated in “antiphon” at the Tag der Performance 2015 in Bamberg. He plays drums in the band “Dr. Umwuchts Tanzpalast”. David Grimm is a long-time volunteer exhibit curator with “kontakt – Das Kulturprojekt”. University studies: architecture [UdK Berlin], art history and European ethnology [Bamberg], fine art/artistic concepts [AdbK Nürnberg] since 2015. Cooperation with: Kunstverein Bamberg, Chapeau Claque – Verein für kreative Medien und Kulturpädagogik e.V., TiG – Theater im Gärtnerviertel Bamberg, International House of Artists Villa Concordia.
Jakob Fischer, born in 1989, is a German studies graduate, independent artist and culture promoter in Bamberg. In addition to his main musical pursuits as a guitarist, singer and percussionist in various bands (currently “Brotmüller” & “Dr. Umwuchts Tanzpalast”), he also lends his musicianship to independent theatre projects. He is a founding member of the “Ensemble Ernst von Leben”, an assistant director in the “Theater im Gärtnerviertel” and a member of the Künstlerkollektiv INGE. He is also a promoter for “kontakt – Das Kulturprojekt” and the “Alte Seilerei – Raum für Kultur”.