our offers for artists
open call#4
UpStage Berlin
Residency Program for Emerging Ukrainian Theatre Artists
UpStage Berlin is a two-month residency in Berlin for emerging Ukrainian theatre artists at the beginning of their professional careers.
We invite curious and socially engaged directors, playwrights, performers, dramaturgs, scenographers, choreographers and interdisciplinary theatre makers to develop new artistic projects that engage with the changing realities of Ukraine within Europe.
The residency offers time, space and professional support for artistic research, experimentation and exchange. UpStage Berlin is a place to develop ideas, explore new theatrical languages, connect with an international artistic community and bring your theatrical vision to the stage.
Focus
Russia's war against Ukraine has changed political, cultural and ecological landscape of the continent, but also the private lives of millions of people. We recognize that many Ukrainian artists have spent the past years responding to the immediate realities of war. While the war dominates almost all aspects of everyday life, we would like to open a space for reflection, curiosity, complexity, humor, beauty, contradiction, and imagination beyond their given boundaries of present political realities - without avoiding or escaping them. UpStage Berlin encourages strong ideas and visions by Ukrainian theatre artists that respond to the broader conditions of contemporary life.
Proposals are welcome in all forms of contemporary theatre and performance, including text-based work, devised theatre, interdisciplinary performance, movement-based work, visual theatre, immersive formats and experimental practices.
Lenses (no hierarchy).
time • joy • belonging • memory • space • nature • care • sleep • intimacy • rituals • bodies • language • imagination • hospitality • living together • cities • work • attention • failure
Who Can Apply?
emerging Ukrainian directors, playwrights, performers, dramaturgs, scenographers, choreographers currently living outside of Ukraine
emerging Ukrainian directors, playwrights, performers, dramaturgs, scenographers, choreographers still living in Ukraine
Ukrainian theatre groups, companies or international collectives with Ukrainian team members.
Selected Artists /Groups Receive:
two-month free use of workspaces at Hotel Continental – Art Space in Exile
professional and infrastructural support by HC
scheduling and coordination support
a stage for final presentation in Berlin
professional artistic context within Hotel Continental / Art Space in Exile
inclusion in Hotel Continental - Art Space in Exile program and communication channels
a budget of up to 1.000,00€ per production for production costs.
a budget of up to 5.000,00€ per production for production costs for artists still living in Ukraine.
What the Artist Is Responsible For
recruiting their own artistic team
organizing and coordinating their work
setting and keeping their schedule and budget
accommodation and personal living costs
documentation and communication of the process
Schedule
3.8.2026: Call opens
3.10.2026: Dealine for applications
3.11.2026 Announcement of results
3.1.2027: first residency can begin
How Can I Apply?
Applicants are asked to fill in our application form below. The link will be active from 3.8.2026 - 3.10.2026
past open calls
OPEN CALL #3
Voices before us - Voices after us is a writing workshop of the topic of origin and memory.
We invite young people (16-35 years old) to a three-day writing workshop on the topic of origin and memory. The workshop focuses on exploring one's own family history through writing – with a particular attention to gaps, ruptures, and the "untold" – potentially including family history related to the ruptures of World War 2.
The workshop is not about finding "right" answers, but about tracing one's roots, about personal reflection, and a sensitive approach to one's own origins through language. No prior literary experience is necessary. Participation is free; places are limited. Working languages: German and English.
The workshop will focus on:
writing workshop using biographical material
working with memories, fragments, and open questions
a sensitive approach to personal and historical topics
exchange within a small, confidential group (approx. 6-10 people)
Voices before us - Voices after us
Writing Workshop 18.-20.5.2026
Dates and Times
application deadline: 15. 5. 2026
Workshop dates: 18.5./19.5./20.5. Every day 16:00 -19:00
The workshop will take place in the gallery of Hotel Continental - Art Space in Exile.
OPEN CALL #1
High Five Exhibition Series
Who can apply?
This open call is for artists currently living in exile in Berlin, including both emerging and established practitioners working in visual art, installation, video, photography, and mixed media. While the project is rooted in the context of exile and displacement, thematic restriction is not madatory. The key to participating in our program is conceptual strength, clarity and feasibility within the short-term format.
What the Artist is responsible for
Participating artists are responsible for:
● Installation and de-installation
● Production costs
● Technical setup (if required beyond basic infrastructure)
● Providing promotional material and own promotional activity of the exhibition
● Bringing their own audience to the opening
● Active presence during the opening event
This model is based on shared responsibility and active artistic engagement.
Read FAQ here.
Application process and schedule
19.4.2026 Deadline for applications
1.5.2026 Announcement of participants
28.5.2026 Opening of the first High Five Exhibition
The open call is closed. The next round for applications will open in August 2026.
High Five Exhibition Series is an offer for artists currently living in exile to exhibit their work at in our gallery for free.
What we offer
We offer the possibility to exhibit your work at our venue for 5 days, with the opening on Thursday evening. Your exhibition will be on view from Friday to Monday, with de-installation on Tuesday. Selected artists receive use of our gallery without fee, as well as promotional and coordinational support within the professional context of Gallery of Hotel Continental - Art Space in Exile.
Selected artists receive:
● Free use of the gallery space for 5 exhibition days
● Professional artistic context within our gallery
● Inclusion in Hotel Continental - Art Space in Exile communication channels
● Scheduling and coordination support
● A curated environment aligned with contemporary art practices
This format is designed to provide visibility and momentum within the Berlin art context.
OPEN CALL #2
Routes & Roots Studio Residency
Routes n’ Roots (RnR) is an offer for Berlin-based emerging musicians with migrant, relocation or refugee experience to take part in a two-month studio residency at Hotel Continental - Art Space in Exile, Berlin. Residencies will start in June 2026.
We are offering six studio residencies for young artists looking for time, space, and community to deepen their practice. Each residency runs for two months.
Residents will receive independent access to our cozy, acoustically adapted music studio, equipped with a 24-channel mixer, PA, drum kit, keys amp, bass amp, and guitar amp. Other extra equipment depends exclusively on the artists. The artists will also be able to use shared spaces in the house, including our urban garden, kitchen, and common living room.
Studio access will be offered in coexistence with our wider artistic community. The residency is an opportunity to get in touch with other artists from diverse disciplines and backgrounds.
Read FAQ here.
Who can apply?
We are looking for applications from Berlin-based young musicians (aged 18 to 29 years) with migration, displacement, or refugee experience who are seeking a protected space to write, rehearse, record, and develop their work, while the possibility of exchange with artists from different disciplines and backgrounds. Any musical genre and style is welcome.
Application process and schedule
1.5.2026 Deadline for applications
15.5.2026 Announcement of participants
1.6..2026 Start of first residency