A production by Teatro Stabile del Veneto, Teatrul Național Marin Sorescu din Craiova, fringe ensemble Bonn

Featuring: Laura Maria Babaian and Mihnea Presură
Chorus: Leilani Basu-Weidner, Katharina Donat, Cosma Jünemann, Marla Kreuzberg, Meret Marie Mebus, Veronika Rachor, Charlotte Tienken, Sabrina Wagner

Director: Frank Heuel
Text: Marta Dalla Via
Set and Costumes: Annika Ley
Live DJ: Sofi Rex
Assistant Director: Lutz Ackermann

To be loved or not to be loved…Inspired by Shakespeare, “Brain Storm” explores the emotional turmoil of young people in a wild, impulsive, yet tender pas de deux. Who dares to reveal their wounds? Who cries out their desire and pain to the world? No competition, no struggle for a place in the sun, no coldness, and no aloofness. Instead, a struggle for a kiss, a glance, a gentle touch.

Two artists, a choir of young people, a DJ… That’s all it takes.

The STORM Project is a European project funded by Creative Europe that combines theater and mental well-being. While it is centered on young people aged 18 to 25, it is open to them and everyone else. In a world marked by anxiety, isolation, and uncertainty, the project creates spaces where these experiences can be explored and transformed through art. Theater—and in particular, the imagery of Shakespeare—serves as a tool for exploring emotions, relationships, and identities.

An international team from Italy, Romania, and Germany facilitated participatory, non-therapeutic workshops in creative writing, art, theater, and improvisation, offering participants an encounter with Shakespeare’s world. The young participants were directly involved in the creative process; some of them are now performing in the play. By combining personal experience with artistic imagination, the project offers a contemporary perspective on young people’s relationship to their “storms in their heads” and to society.

Shakespeare’s theater thrives on hatred, major conflicts, extreme love, blood, and power, and we’re not interested in taming any of it. If you need some comfort, grab a blanket, a hot drink, and scroll through your feed. But if you’re looking for a safe space to rehearse for a better life, the theater is perfect—Shakespeare is perfect.

Because the stage is a safe place where you can die while pretending to talk seriously about life—in this case, the mysterious lives of future adults, as they described them to us: a storm in the mind, a mix of poetry, insomnia, comedy, and fear.

Marta Dalla Via

Premiere
September 12, 2026
Teatro Camploy, Verona

September 18, 2026
September 19, 2026
Theater im Ballsaal, Bonn

September 26, 2026
Marin Sorescu National Theater, Craiova

The Partners

The Teatro Stabile del Veneto is one of Italy’s leading production theaters, a renowned center of artistic and cultural tradition. It operates venues in Venice, Padua, and Treviso. It combines regional tradition with innovative cultural projects. Its goal is to build a sustainable and digitally advanced environment to promote local talent and reach an ever-growing audience. The TSV collaborates with the universities of Padua and Venice, schools in the region, small local theater groups, and cultural and community associations. Education is also close to the TSV’s heart: The acting academy is based on an innovative model developed in collaboration with the region and funded by the ESF (European Social Fund) program. The TSV leads the Universerìe project, in which students from the University of Padua are actively involved as writers and actors. In addition, the theater is part of the “Teatri per la Regione Veneto” network, which is dedicated to promoting theater in the region.

With 175 years of history, the Marin Sorescu National Theater in Craiova is Romania’s second-oldest national theater. Since 1995, it has been the first theater in Central and Eastern Europe to become a member of the European Theater Convention. It enjoys international renown and has participated in major festivals such as Edinburgh, Avignon, the Holland Festival, the Vienna Festival, and the Shakespeare festivals in Tokyo, Gdańsk, and Bath. In 1994, director Emil Boroghină founded the International Shakespeare Festival, which is now considered one of the most prestigious in the world. The theater supports emerging talent through the TNT Festival for young European directors and remains a cultural institution.

Since 1999, the Fitzcarraldo Foundation has been committed to sustainability and innovation in cultural and creative policy, practice, and processes. It conducts research, provides consulting and training, and advocates for the transformative potential of cultural work. Fitzcarraldo’s approach is based on independence, collaboration, a spirit of experimentation, and participation, and emphasizes the fundamental role of culture as a public good and a driver of social and economic prosperity. A key pillar of the foundation’s expertise is its in-depth research into the interplay between culture, community, and social cohesion.

The Department of General Psychology (DPG) at the University of Padua conducts outstanding empirical research in human and animal psychology, a tradition that traces its roots back to Vittorio Benussi. With 80 faculty members (80% above the national bibliometric thresholds), 26 staff members, 40 postdocs, and 50 doctoral students across three doctoral programs, the department has 50 laboratories equipped with state-of-the-art facilities for cognitive neuroscience. As part of the Padua Neuroscience Center, the DPG offers clinical services through SCUP and enjoys a high international reputation. It has recently received prestigious European and national grants (Horizon 2020, ERC, PRIN, PNRR) and is recognized worldwide as “excellent.” The DPG is an associate partner of the STORM project.

BRAIN STORM is part of the STORM project—Shakespearean Theater for Outlasting Resilience in Mental Health—which is jointly funded by the Creative Europe Program and was founded by the Teatro Stabile del Veneto (IT), the Teatrul Național Marin Sorescu din Craiova (RO), Fringe Ensemble (DE), and Fondazione Fitzcarraldo (IT), with the Department of General Psychology at the University of Padua (IT) as an associated partner.

Funded by the European Union. However, the views and opinions expressed are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the Creative Europe Desk Culture. Neither the European Union nor the funding authority can be held responsible for them.