Giovanna di Filippo Vargas, B.A. MA
Contact
Since March 15, 2025, Giovanna di Filippo Vargas has been a research assistant, Univ. Ass. "prae doc" at the Institute for European Ethnology.
In her artistic and academic work, she combines theater, anthropology, gender studies, and multimodal/audiovisual methods to explore social and political issues. She is particularly interested in the intersections between performance, identity, and decolonial knowledge.
Her academic background includes a Bachelor of Arts in Puppet and Object Theater from the Stuttgart University of Music and Performing Arts (HMDK Stuttgart). Her final project, "Chicana Box, A Multidimensional Play in the Box for Everyone," dealt with chess, entrails, and colonialism and was developed, directed, and produced under the supervision of Samira Wenzel. She also holds a Master’s degree in Gender Studies from Université Paris 8, Vincennes Saint-Denis, with a thesis on feminism, local politics, and the 1991 constitution in the context of the Kankuama community in Colombia.
Additionally, she holds a Bachelor’s degree in Theater Studies (B.A. thesis: "Dramatic Representations, Bodies, and Gender in Afro-Brazilian Theater, a case study of Bando de Teatro Olodum" Université Paris 8) and a Bachelor's degree in Anthropology (B.A. thesis: "Las Chirimías en el Chocó and the Role of Musicians in Times of Armed Conflict, a Case Study in Tadó, Colombia").
Research Interests and Projects
Theater Pedagogy and Project Development: Leading and developing participatory theater projects, e.g., at Club Sichtbar / Visible, Theater der Jungen Welt, Leipzig.
Performance Art and Staging:
"Chicana Box II: How to Eat a Banana in a Royal Way" (with Eva Geckeler, Cie Iwan & Jo, performed at Fest'Arts Libourne, France, and Awhal Festival, Aachen).
"Tiefen. ausatmen," a performative exhibition and video installation with the art collective Polymora Inc. (funded by the Fonds Darstellende Kunst and the Cultural Office of Leipzig, in collaboration with Garage Ost and Galerie KUB, Leipzig).
Cultural Participation and Mediation: Art and theater workshops for children and young people with limited access to culture ("Landscapes, with Me Inside and Outside," in collaboration with Pöge-Haus e.V., Leipzig, funded by the Federal Association of Migrant Organizations Networks (NEMO) e.V.).
Film and Documentation :
"La Mosca: Have You Ever Had the Strange Feeling of Being a Fly in the Soup?" (Short animated film for racism prevention in Leipzig, produced within the framework of the Deutsch-Spanische Freundschaft association).
"1.30/1440 Minutes: Diary of the New Live Scene. Chapter I: Pandemic" (Short documentary film, funded by the Denkzeit Scholarship, Cultural Foundation of the Free State of Saxony).
Current Collaborations
Collaboration with civil society organizations and art collectives, including in the Comunidad de Paz de San José de Apartadó, Colombia.
About me
Since April 1, 2025: Research Assistant, Univ. Ass. "prae doc," University of Vienna
2020: Bachelor of Arts in Puppet Theater
Bachelor's Final Project: Theater piece "Chicana Box, A Multidimensional Play in the Box for Everyone. A Story about Chess, Entrails, and Colonialism." Stuttgart University of Music and Performing Arts (HMDK Stuttgart).
2016: Master’s in Gender Studies
Master's Thesis: Feminism, local politics, and the 1991 constitution in the context of the Kankuama community and their rights as an ethnic minority in present-day Colombia. Université Paris 8, Vincennes Saint-Denis, France.
2014: Bachelor’s in Theater Studies
Bachelor's Thesis: "Dramatic Representations, Bodies, and Gender in Afro-Brazilian Contemporary Theater, a case study of Bando de Teatro Olodum”. Université Paris 8, Vincennes Saint-Denis, France.
2012: Bachelor’s in Anthropology
Bachelor's Thesis: "Las Chirimías en el Chocó, a Case Study on the Social Role of Musicians in Tadó, Chocó Region in Colombia." Université Paris 8 Vincennes Saint-Denis, France.
Projects / Professional Experience
2024-2025
Theater pedagogue, group leader, and project developer at "Sichtbar / Visible" Club, Theater der Jungen Welt, Leipzig.
2024
Development, direction, and performance of "Chicana Box II: How to Eat a Banana in a Royal Way" with Eva Geckeler, Cie Iwan & Jo, Fest'Arts Libourne, France, and Awhal Festival, Aachen.
2023-2024
Design, conception, and pedagogy for the "Landscapes, with Me Inside and Outside" project: Art workshops and excursions to theaters and museums for children and young people with limited access to culture. In collaboration with Pöge-Haus e.V., Leipzig.
Editorial, design, and concept development for the Landscapes magazine 2024.
2022/2023
Conceptualization and implementation of workshops and theater projects. Collaboration with civil society organizations and art collectives in Comunidad de Paz de San José de Apartadó, Colombia.
2022
Performer and set designer for the reuptake of "Tiefen," a performative exhibition and video installation by and with the art collective Polymora Inc. (funded by the Fonds Darstellende Kunst, NEUSTART KULTUR). In collaboration with Garage Ost e.V.
2021/2022
Concept and performance in "Tiefen. ausatmen" with the art collective Polymora Inc., funded by the Fonds Darstellende Kunst in collaboration with Galerie KUB, Leipzig.
2020
Assistant director at the Young Theater, Landestheater Detmold.
2019
Direction and animation (Film): Director, concept, and editing of the short-animated film "La Mosca: Have You Ever Had the Strange Feeling of Being a Fly in the Soup?" (Short animated film supporting and connecting cases of institutional and interpersonal racism in Leipzig).
2019 – 2020
Short documentary film "Diary of the New Live Scene. Chapter I: Pandemic," funded by the "Denkzeit Scholarship," Cultural Foundation of the Free State of Saxony.
2015-2016
Director and performer in "Chicana Box, a Material Theater Play in the Box for Everyone" with Eva Geckeler, Mateo Marin, and Agustin Lipp. Performance: Fitz Theater, Stuttgart (Bachelor’s final project, HMDK).
2015
Internship at the Documentation Center of Teatro Vila Velha in Salvador de Bahía, Brazil.