Theater and literature have always united my love of languages and cultures, and I have been writing and performing from a very early age.
For me, it is always a tremendous pleasure to stand before an audience and have the privilege of entertaining, inspiring, and informing them. I am passionate about bringing culture to life and giving language its own stage.
German
Meine Liebe zu Sprachen und Kulturen findet seit jeher ihren Ausdruck in Theater und Literatur. Schon in frühester Kindheit habe ich geschrieben und auf der Bühne performt. Es ist mir eine große Freude und ein besonderes Privileg, vor einem Publikum zu stehen, es zu unterhalten, zu inspirieren und zu informieren. Mit Leidenschaft erwecke ich Kultur zum Leben und gebe der Sprache ihre ganz eigene Bühne.
MY LATEST PROJECT: BARANSULAN
JANUS AND THE COLORS THAT BECAME
Performed in dialogue with César Franck’s music and Janus Hochgesand’s live painting, this lyrical narration follows the arc of a human life from birth and becoming to maturity and completion. The four movements of Franck’s music frame three spoken interludes, each reflecting on a different stage of existence, while a single painting gradually takes shape throughout the performance. Drawing on literature, music, colour, memory and cultural fragments, the work becomes a meditation on creation, identity, time, mortality and what remains when the final note and the final stroke have passed.
Interdisciplinary Performance: Janus Hochgesand, Henriette J. Runte & Oxalis Quartett
(Maison Rhénanie-Palatinat, Dijon)
Live Painting: Janus Hochgesand | Concept Text and Poetic Narration: Dr. Henriette J. Runte | String Quartet: Oxalis Quartett | Composition: César Franck (String Quartet in D major) | Venue: Maison Rhénanie-Palatinat
Download the original text in French of the lyrical narration, written and performed by Dr. Henriette J. Runte at the live painting event in Dijon.
Photos: VARGASPHOTO
BARANSULAN
We’re all in the same boat, just trying
Just trying to figure it out.
With words that confuse us but fuel us
With words that lead us astray.
We wander the seven seas
In search of our answers
We stop and hold on here and there
We try and remember
The stories they told us
We try, but mainly, we fail.
And yet we keep talking and going
And that fills us with hope
So what the next chapter will bring is still open
What the next word will be is yet to be known!
Baransulan tells the story of a young man’s search for the meaning of words. On his voyage, he discovers many languages and is tempted by various ideologies and belief systems. It is when he also discovers nuance and emotion through music and dance that he finally makes sense of the world and his place in it.
Baransulan is a classic coming-of-age story that hones in on the importance of communication, not only through words, but also through music, movement, and emotion. The lyrical quality and rhythm of the spoken words in Baransulan are in constant dialogue with the music and the dance, and the union of the three gives the piece an innovative new appeal and charm.