Berlin Takes the Stage: The Queer Performance Festival Ignites a Citywide Celebration
As queer rights face increasing pressure across Europe — from Hungary’s book bans to the UK’s rollback on trans healthcare — Berlin refuses to stay silent.
This November, the city known for its unapologetic creativity raises the curtain on something historic: the first-ever Queer Performance Festival (QPF), a five-day explosion of drag, dance, circus, pole, and protest.
A Radical Declaration: Queer Art Is Uncontainable
More than 50 performers and collectives will light up venues across the city from November 12–16, 2025. The lineup reads like a love letter to queer artistry:
Lucio Vidal from Staatsballett, underground-pop visionary Dornika, voguing icon Dianna Jacksan Manzamussa, Lawunda Richardson from Glastonbury’s NYC Downlow, and Berlin’s powerhouse collectives KÖNIG, Slut Riot, and Magic Dyke*.
©Queer Performance Festival - instagram
Each brings their own defiance and joy to a program that’s equal parts political and ecstatic — a statement that queer culture is not only alive but thriving.
“This festival is a flag we plant in the ground and say: this place belongs to us,”
“Queer spaces are under threat — this is our response.”
A New Model for Queer Collaboration
QPF reimagines the performance festival format. Instead of isolated shows, artists from drag, ballet, voguing, and circus come together in a collaborative residency, co-creating new work that blends their disciplines and identities.
It’s not just a lineup — it’s a living, breathing act of resistance.
“In a time when queer art is being censored, Berlin is saying something simple and radical: this is our home.”
©Queer Performance Festival - instagramWhy It Matters
In a Europe where queer voices are being pushed to the margins, Berlin’s Queer Performance Festival is a reminder that art remains one of our fiercest forms of protest. This isn’t just about performance — it’s about reclaiming space, rewriting narratives, and reminding the world that queer creativity has no borders.
Explore the full program:
queerperformancefestival.com/program
Credits / Photographer: QueerGarden/Beliza Buzollo
Models: Seliquere, Jade Lee, The Darvish, Buba Sababa, Lawunda Richardson, Michiel Tange van Leeuwen
