As part of the “Kulturbrücke Cantara” project, the children’s musical “Die Weltenspringer und das Portal der Träume” was developed by children and young people and premiered at the Theater Gütersloh in July 2025. The play was slightly revised and recast for the revival: around 30 children from the Ummeln and Martinschule elementary schools and 15 young people from the extracurricular youth group “Kulturbrücke Cantara Youth” brought it to the stage together and captivated the audience.
The musical centers on a group of children and teenagers who discover a mysterious portal while exploring their surroundings. Curiosity and courage drive the group to step through, and the portal turns out to be a rocket. The children and teenagers are catapulted into a series of fascinating but also disturbing worlds. At times, the theater lab was transformed into a sparkling world full of candy and a place where young people spend their time exclusively playing video games, at other times into a gloomy shadow landscape. Each of these worlds presented new challenges and insights. Particularly noteworthy: each performer brings their own strengths, abilities, and insecurities to the table, which become apparent over the course of the musical and become a source of growth and community. The young actors realize that only through solidarity, trust, and mutual support can they find their way through the dream worlds and gain a new perspective on the real world.
The “Kulturbrücke Cantara” project run by the Liz Mohn Foundation in Gütersloh and the Bielefeld-based “Gesellschaft in Bewegung e.V.” offers children and young people the opportunity to gain professional insights into acting, dance, singing, and music, discover their talents, and surpass themselves. “Die Weltenspringer und das Portal der Träume” once again made it clear that when young people are given space to develop, stories emerge that touch, inspire, and encourage.
Project manager Leila Benazzouz agrees, summarizing: “Over the past few months, we have seen how everyone has grown through the project—not only on stage, but also in their own self-confidence. It is moments like these that show why cultural education is so important.”
Another highlight of the evening was the dance theater piece “Beatz & Battles,” which choreographer Andreas Wegwerth developed and staged in collaboration with the Association “Berufliche Ausbildung und Qualifizierung Jugendlicher und Erwachsener” (BAJ).
