Why do we remember Icarus’ fall more than his flight, the crash more than the jump? We need to revolutionise our view to see that with that leap he also overcame an obstacle.

In a dramatic and uncertain landscape marked by war, genocide, climate collapse; in a year of great change for Gender Bender and difficulties and challenges for several friendly festivals, we want to propose “risk” as a keyword, inviting us to imagine a different future and build alternatives.
Risk, like the courage needed to launch oneself beyond the clouds of the present, is a series of conscious signs of action and activation, driven by the desire for change and improvement.
This edition of Gender Bender therefore aims to be a brave space in which to be courageous in exposing ourselves and experimenting, in which to feel ready to dare. The invitation is to discover works by artists who challenge conventions and beliefs through alternative ways of sharing time and space together.
These are works and visions that take both a slanted and direct look, without pandering to stereotypical narratives, without giving unambiguous answers, but opening up new perspectives and reflections.
Some of the questions they ask—simple and radical—are: where do I stand? How close do I get to other people? Will we touch each other, look at each other, recognise each other? Will we be afraid? How will we live together, this moment and the next? Will we be able to fly? May this be a stimulating and transformative edition, offering us the impetus to face these five risks together and with courage: to experience pleasure, to change our minds, to discover ourselves, to expose ourselves, to be amazed.

Mauro Meneghelli