Eve of the Champs 2021

August 26, 2021; 7 PM CEST

Join us at the Spree River in Berlin-Niederschöneweide. Storytellers are invited to tell their true, personal stories in English or German.

"Incredibly inspiring, moving, funny, delightful evening." 
– Khushi Pasquale, storyteller

THE BEAR celebrates its 61st show and 7th season of “True Stories, Erzähltes Leben” live in Berlin

Thursday, August 26th

18:30 hrs. Doors open
19 hrs. Stories begin (CEST)

For this show, we kindly ask you for a voluntary donation at the entrance instead of the usual ticket purchases.

Suggested donation is 15 € / 10 €.

Show host: Dyane Neiman
Music: Sarah Bird

Eve of the Champs is made possible by the generous performances of our storytellers, our team of volunteers, THE BEAR e.V. and our partners Moving-Speaker.com, Moving Poets Berlin, Draussenstadt Berlin

Nelson Farber is a die-hard New Yorker who now calls Berlin home. After spending many years in law, he decided to pursue a creative career in film and television, in which he works as a writer, director, producer, television journalist and actor. His work regularly appears on Germany's top science and culture television slots, including  Aspekte/Zdf, Kulturseit/3sat and Nano/3sat. Nelson, together with his wife and creative partner Christine Daum-Farber, were nominated for the prestigious LiteraVision 2014 award for best German television piece about a work of literature, for their Aspekte segment on Nicholson Baker's 'House of Holes.'

Nelson is a co-founder of 'Directors Collective' in New York City – an ongoing collaborative exchange between filmmakers that includes workshops with directors and actors. His film 'Final Position' recently was shown at the 2020 edition of The Lower East Side Festival of the Arts, and he is also pleased to be premiering his medium length narrative 'Song of Solomon.' 

He loves telling stories at 'The Bear' and is delighted to participate in this special event.. 

Nelson’s story: “Doctor Kleinmeyer's Lawyer”.

Ben McGuire

A passionate believer in the ferocious power of story, Ben McGuire is a lawyer, writer, documentary filmmaker, and photographer.

HE IS YET TO FIND A BETTER COMPASS THAN STORY TO HELP US FIND TRUE NORTH AND TO CELEBRATE THE JOYS AND QUIRKS OF LIFE ALONG THE WAY.    

Ben’s story: “TBA”

Annie Voigt

Annie Voigt's adventure and storytelling career began with climbing, when she ticked off nearly every single box of "Mistakes to Avoid While Trad Climbing" on her first outdoor trad climb. She survived, and went on to see what other mistakes would not kill her. Her solo expeditions began with a solo kayaking trip, followed by a 3000KM bike ride to the Nordkap both at age 26. Her latest feat is successfully running a solo 1000KM Ultramarathon from the Lowest to Highest point of Germany, after having started running only six months prior. She is currently training for a 500KM swimpacking expedition down the river Elbe.

Annie Voigt was born in Germany, and grew up in Athens (GA), USA. After a lifetime of searching for a place she might belong, she's finally set up base camp in the chaotic folds of Berlin, Germany, where she's working on her PhD in neuroscience on the mechanics of learning and memory. She is also the comic artist behind BotsAndBrainz (https://www.instagram.com/botsandbrainz/?hl=en). You can find out more about her or read her adventure stories on her website TheBotBeyondTheBrainz.com or her Instagram account (@thebotbeyondthebrainz https://www.instagram.com/thebotbeyondthebrainz/?hl=en).

Annie’s story: "TBA"

Izzy Ahrbeck

Born in Tokyo to German and Canadian parents, curiosity and wanderlust were always a driving force in her life. Izzy has since then called 8 different countries home and has currently unpacked her suitcase in Berlin… for now. 

From a very young age, Izzy was set on being a storyteller. From making short “newscast” videos every Friday after school, to interviewing community members for her radio show, to being a freelance journalist for organizations, Izzy wanted to uplift traditionally dismissed voices. That lead her to working in the film and music industry where she immersed herself in the Toronto arts and activism scene. She worked on numerous film sets included her own award-winning projects and later co-produced Canada’s longest running music festival. However, a lost sense of purpose and fulfillment nagged at her until she spontaneously decided to leave her dreamy career behind and start a new life in Barcelona where she pursued her master's in Sustainable Business & Innovation. 

Izzy is now a self-proclaimed activist in the business community, promoting radical change and more sustainable practices. She hosts her own podcast on the topic and presents to companies internationally on how to innovate more impactfully. She crept into the storytelling world only a few months ago and is eager to participate and learn more. 

Izzy’s Story: “Hitchhiking Hope”

Cassis B Staudt

 Composer Cassis B has studied music at the Hamburg State University and at the Juilliard University in New York City (film music/orchestration).

 Working for director Jim Jarmusch brought her to New York City. She won a Golden Palm at the Cannes International Film Festival for being one of the producers of the Iggy Pop and Tom Waits segment ‘Coffee and Cigarettes’. 

 Cassis’ band b-blush featuring the esteemed drummer David Cossin (YoYo Ma/Bang on a Can Allstars), performed for over 10 years in New York featuring Cassis' song compositions. In 2004 one of her ideas lead to the Oscar nominated film ‘Ferry Tales’ with a specially composed theme song by Cassis.

 For the feature ‘About A Girl’, film music composer Cassis founded an eponymous band with the legendary bass player Herbie Flowers (‘Walk on the Wild Side’/David Bowie) who hired her for eight years to teach songwriting at his Rock Shop (music workshops in England), along with other musicians like Chris Spedding (Roxy Music).

Dyane Neiman

Founder & director of The Bear. true stories. erzaehltes leben; Eve of the Champs show host.

Dyane is from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and has become the most German-like American you’ll ever meet. The former theater director and choreographer once told stories with moving bodies, now she creates with moving words.

By day, Dyane works as a speaker coach with her business Moving Speaker.  And every third Friday evening,  – she hosts, charms, persuades and twists arms so that Berliners will take the stage and share their stories.

“I believe stories help us find meaning out of this chaos called life.”

Say hello: dyane@thebear-storytelling.de

Chief Shepherd at The Bear steering strategy and design.

As a trained designer Hanna is sort of a visual storyteller. Focusing on where design and healthcare meet, she is passionate about improving patient experiences with her company BEWUSST-SIGN.

“Stories make us feel connected and understood in unexpected ways. They make us take time to really listen and be open for empathy – values that we’re often missing as a society right now.”

Say hello: hanna@thebear-storytelling.de

MARTIN BERING

Favorite Storyteller and Eve of the Champs photographer.

Learn more about Martin’s coaching practice: https://coaching-berlin.info/