European Premiere of Namibia's first opera - »Chief Hijangua« in Berlin

in the evening program of the Dekoloniale Festival 2023

Chief Hijangua is Namibia’s first opera and celebrated its premiere in 2022 at the National Theatre of Namibia as a Namibian-German cooperation project.

The work »Chief Hijangua« elaborates on the common history between Namibia and Germany during the colonial period in a multilingual and intercultural exchange: The opera is sung in Otjiherero – one of Namibia’s languages – and in German. The Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin plays under the direction of the composer.

As part of the cooperation with the Berlin model project »Dekoloniale Memory Culture in the City«, the premiere on Friday, September 15 will be embedded in the evening program of the Dekoloniale Festival 2023.

Festival Director Nadja Ofuatey-Alazard: »We accompany the Berlin performance with a critical perspective on colonialism and racism. Learning processes are needed on all sides, if transnational collaborations are to succeed even in difficult historical contexts.«

You can find more information about the opera here.

Composition: Eslon Hindundu
Libretto: Nikolaus Frei
Directed by: Kim Mira Meyer und Co-Regisseur Micheal Pulse
Funded by the LOTTO-Stiftung Berlin
Supported by Siemens Arts Program
Project partner of the European Premiere: Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin
Organizer: Momentbühne e.V.

»Chief Hijangua« is a production of Momentbühne e.V. / Paid tickets must be purchased to participate:

+++ Click here for ticket sales +++

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The five-year model project Dekoloniale Memory Culture in the City was completed in 2024 +++ The project website will therefore no longer be updated +++ A final publication on the project was published in September 2025 +++  The five-year model project Dekoloniale Memory Culture in the City was completed in 2024 +++ The project website will therefore no longer be updated +++ A final publication on the project was published in September 2025 +++  The five-year model project Dekoloniale Memory Culture in the City was completed in 2024 +++ The project website will therefore no longer be updated +++ A final publication on the project was published in September 2025 +++ 
The five-year model project Dekoloniale Memory Culture in the City was completed in 2024 +++ The project website will therefore no longer be updated +++ A final publication on the project was published in September 2025 +++  The five-year model project Dekoloniale Memory Culture in the City was completed in 2024 +++ The project website will therefore no longer be updated +++ A final publication on the project was published in September 2025 +++  The five-year model project Dekoloniale Memory Culture in the City was completed in 2024 +++ The project website will therefore no longer be updated +++ A final publication on the project was published in September 2025 +++