what moves me

"MOTIVATIONAL BLOCK" Here I sit, pondering. Trying to figure out what drives me, why I risk losing sight of my goals, and why some things get finished after all while others fade into the mists of time and oblivion. Was I more motivated in the past, more consistent in pursuing my visions, and more tenacious when it came to perseverance? Or have the countless experiences, obstacles overcome, and mundane transience of the last few decades simply made me more mature, more econom

"50th Newsletter" Fifty newsletters. Fifty times I’ve sorted through my thoughts, distilled my experiences, and recorded my observations. Fifty times I’ve asked myself: What’s on my mind right now? What do I want to share? And now, at number 50, I look in the mirror and see: time. It hasn’t just left its mark in the texts, but elsewhere as well. Right under my eyes, to be precise. So: a monologue about the visible and what really matters. LOOK AT ME! A MONOLOGUE Look at me. Y

"THE STRUGGLE FOR COMPETENCE" Last Friday, Aretta Hakios, the director of the Joy of Dance Academy, and I had a podcast session with Cécile Baumann. During the session, we presented our new training and continuing education programs. It struck me how often terms like experience, knowledge, competence, and craftsmanship came up. All terms meant to make an impact and demonstrate a high level of expertise and skill. What value do these terms still hold? To what extent do these a

"The Thing About the Libretto" Oh, what memories these are. These snapshots, these perspectives—views from the front of the audience, zoomed in from the wings, or images captured up close right on stage—all speak of energy, sensuality, poetry, and expressiveness. With many photos, I don’t even need a video to recall the scene or dance sequence. Here and there, initial thoughts about them even come to mind; the research I conducted myself to explore the appropriate movement ma

"reading – reading aloud – being read to" An article appeared in ZEIT Magazine on December 11, 2025, featuring several statements from successful German writers on the topic of “readings.” What their stance is, what they think of them, and how they handle them. The general sentiment: not really keen on it, just no Q&A with the audience—why am I putting myself through this! Well, despite the different starting points of the individual authors who spoke—there are the moderator

"COMPETITIONS – and their own rules" This past weekend, I served as a judge for the first time at a nationwide Swiss dance competition in the urban scene, where crews from various dance schools performed. They competed to measure themselves against others and to better assess their own abilities. This took me back to a time when I myself used to participate in competitions. Admittedly, the focus was different—it was about artistic flair, composition, dramaturgy, and a signatu

"COMPETITIONS – and their own rules" This past weekend, I served as a judge for the first time at a nationwide Swiss dance competition in the urban scene, where crews from various dance schools performed. They competed to measure themselves against others and to better assess their own abilities. This took me back to a time when I myself used to participate in competitions. Admittedly, the focus was different—it was about artistic flair, composition, dramaturgy, and a signatu

(with myself, because no one else asks) Question: Do you see yourself as a writer who dances or a dancer who writes? Answer: Yes. Question: That's not an answer. Answer: Yes, it is. Both. But above all: creative and reluctant to be pigeonholed. Question: You've written a novel. Answer: That's right. dancing falling flying. Question: Sounds like instructions for failed pirouettes. Answer: You could see it that way. But it's a declaration of love for life.

‘Rest, restes, have a rest’ Over the last few days, I have been thinking about what topic to cover in the new newsletter. What has excited me, what has inspired me, what is worth pondering? What could inspire my readers, how could I take them on a journey into my world? Until now, topics have usually arisen spontaneously, simply jumping out at me, besieging me, occupying me so much that it was easy for me to make a selection, formulate my thoughts and insights as well as my e

´Movement is not yet dance' The interdependence of dance and music is well known. It is also true that dance can and should stand on its own. Nevertheless, I repeatedly observe how dance subordinates itself to music. For while music always seems to be an independent entity, dance takes on an almost submissive position. Today, thanks to the algorithm (which is, of course, very dance-heavy), I was shown another solo improvisation by a dancer on Instagram. To a well-known jazz s

‘Ambivalence’ At the age of fifteen, I discovered dancing for myself. ‘Free dancing’. Detached from athleticism, ambition and the drive for perfection. A physical fulfilment and a very unique form of expression began to manifest itself. A kind of elixir of life. At the latest after I successfully organised the first movement workshop in my hometown at the age of eighteen (while still in my final year of secondary school) – an intensive weekend workshop with six different danc

‘Transience’ At the moment, I, or rather we, have settled in very well in our new home. We feel comfortable and are slowly getting to know where to find our things. Certain routines are establishing themselves, such as when to have breakfast, where we like to sit when reading or watching a film, where to retreat for a little nap or simply to get out into nature. I still lack the space to get creative. And the leisure time. But everything is in the starting blocks. The studio

‘The thing about entropy’ Sometimes life hits you with a hammer and leaves a hole that you can neither understand nor comprehend in any way. A vacuum is created in which time and space cannot be defined, in which everything mundane is pushed into the background. It's as if you're sitting in a fast train, the landscape rushing past you, only vaguely perceiving what exists out there and existing only in your own stream of consciousness. Although stream is probably the wrong ter

‘Regaining innocence’ During my walk along the banks of the Lech river this Sunday morning, I encountered numerous joggers. They can be divided into three categories: There are the experienced runners who do this not just once a week, but who run their laps in all weathers and at all times of the year. Their posture, their almost casual trot and their good but relaxed pace are evidence of countless repetitions and an almost meditative rhythm. Then there are the joggers who ru

“Focus—the magic word” I shake my head, rub my eyes, squeeze my earlobes, open my eyes wide, take three deep breaths in and out, fix my...

“Like/Dislike” Today, I caught myself once again simply pressing the “Like” button on some posts while surfing social media (mostly...

Roots “Are you writing your new novel? When will you publish your short videos again? Do you write every day? You have to keep...

The relativity of happiness You probably know the feeling: you don't feel well, you feel overlooked or even run over. Misunderstood,...

METAMORPHOSIS Transformation. A process. An unstoppable process that, once set in motion, cannot be reversed. How quickly or slowly it...

UNDERGROUND You probably know that feeling when you just want to disappear, be unreachable by anyone and anything, and say, “I'm off...