Night of the Unshot Poems 2026

Description

In August 1937, a fire burns in the courtyard of the Minsk NKVD prison. State security officers burn manuscripts of Belarusian writers. But not only writings are destroyed – from August 1937 to December 1938, at least ten thousand people are shot in the country. On the night of October 29 to 30, 1937, 132 cultural figures and scientists are executed. Among them are 22 writers. The night marks the end of a brief period of upheaval: in the 1920s, a young Belarusian literature emerges, opening up to European avant-garde currents. The little that remains from that time is hidden, lost, or forgotten. The 'Night of the Unshot Poems' this year is dedicated to the literary circles in which the scene was organized in the 1920s to 1930s, including official and secret, serious and also bizarre ones. The event is conducted in Belarusian, Yiddish, and German. Organized by the Initiative of Friends of Belarusian Literature in Berlin and the Belarusian community RAZAM e. V., with the kind support of the S. Fischer Foundation and the German Marshall Fund. A meeting with extinguished Belarusian literature with and by Alena Aharelysheva, Yaraslava Ananka, Alhierd Bakharevich, Sveta Ben, Zmicer Che, Julia Cimafiejeva, Uladzimir Hramovich, Julia Koifman, Kupra, Jordan Lee Schnee, Inga Lizengevic, Madmapper, Zhenya Oks, Dmitri Strozew, Zmicier Vishniou, Nina Weller, Tina Wünschmann, Viktar Zhybul & Vera Burlak (in a video message) and others.

Highlights

• Reading in Belarusian, Yiddish, and German
• Featuring renowned authors such as Alena Aharelysheva and Yaraslava Ananka
• Focused on Belarusian literature of the 1920s and 1930s

General Information

The event 'Night of the Unshot Poems' takes place at the Literary Colloquium Berlin and is dedicated to the history of Belarusian literature. It highlights the cultural circles of the 1920s and 1930s and commemorates the suppressed voices of that time.

Location

Am Sandwerder 5, 14109 Berlin, Germany

Hide Map

Loading map...

How to get there

Get Directions