On and On and On and On (2025)

A retrospective for the 15th anniversary of machina eX

For 15 years, the Berlin collective has been creating playable theatre pieces that are also walk-in computer games. The 15th anniversary of machina eX is now being celebrated with a retrospective at HAU, which has been the group’s closest cooperation partner from the very beginning.

As part of On and On and On and On, three theatre games can be (re)played from 25 to 28 June: While in Life Goes On the audience travels together to the 1990s in a multimedia board game to reconstruct a story about the Treuhandanstalt, in Intranet the players fight as members of a fictitious local newspaper editorial team against a cyber attack on their region. In addition to the performances at HAU3, both productions are also available as free online versions at HAU4.de.

As part of Houseclub a new production of a machina-eX classic can be experienced: in 15.000 Games, pupils from the Fritz Karsen School in Neukölln will explore the sci-fi dystopia 15.000 Gray (2011) with the 15.000 Gray DIY Kit, and examine the topicality of the very first machina production ever shown at HAU. There will also be an anniversary exhibition, two workshops and discussion formats in which experts and guests will discuss the past, present and future of game theatre. This will create a platform at HAU3 for four days, bringing together old and new machina-eX players, specialist audiences and school classes, gamers and theatre-goers.

Credit: machina eX/Barbara Lenartz