It's me! | Self-staging in dance

The exhibition ‘It's me!’ at the Dance Museum of the German Dance Archive Cologne is dedicated to the multifaceted relationship between dance, photography and film - and the question of representation and self-portrayal of the dancing self. Until 1 March 2026, the Cologne exhibition offers the opportunity to follow the development of this staging practice - from early dance self-testimonies in 19th century photographs to contemporary performance culture on social media platforms such as TikTok and Instagram. A central focus here is on the 20th century, when, with the emergence of movement photography and dance films, the medium of the camera was specifically used not only to depict choreographies and movements, but also to reinterpret them artistically. In this process, dancers and choreographers elevated their self-image to the centrepiece of the performance. Questioning traditional role models, the conscious staging of physicality and the construction and deconstruction of social perspectives paint a subtle picture of how the dancing body is always also a medium of social discourse and an expression of social responsibility - both yesterday and today. In the field of tension between individual identity formation and socio-political reflection, the exhibition opens up deeper perspectives on a complex and at the same time sensual topic.