Saturday, 11 October, 10:30–12:30
In Portuguese and English
Free entry, registration required (see below)

Literature often leaves its margins full of silenced figures. In Shakespeare’s The Tempest, Sycorax, a powerful witch, is conjured in speech, yet never allowed a voice of her own, while her son, Caliban, is branded a monster and his words dismissed. Their stories are left half-told, with one misunderstood and the other unseen–both are marginalized–as others claim the island they are native to and supplant their legacy.   

Unveiling the Redacted Stories, a workshop born from the Marginalia Theatre and facilitated by writer Vinicius Jatobá, departs from this notion of erasure. The workshop seeks to bring forth the overlooked subjectivities of secondary or marginalized characters, locating them in the muted corners of ‘classic’ texts, iconography, historical documents, and monuments. These new marginalia narratives are written alongside and in conversation with the original works, expanding upon and reshaping them.

In this workshop, each participant gives voice to a ‘silenced’ character by writing a short dramatic monologue in the first person. Working with texts in different languages and from a range of different contexts, and inviting the group for their own suggestions, Jatobá guides participants through the practice of elevating the characters’ voices from the margins, enabling them to claim space within the original texts.

The Middle Ground workshops offer the possibility to deepen one’s own writing practice and to be in exchange with other authors about issues around writing. Participants of all ages and experience levels—whether amateur writers, professionals, or literary scholars—are invited to join.   

To register: Please submit a short fiction text  of no more than 500 words in English, German, or Portuguese to middleground@hkw.de, indicating the workshop in the subject line by 28 September 2025. Selected participants will be notified by the end of September.