PSYCHEDELIC SOCIAL CLUB
Backstein Kollektiv

“Psychedelic Social Club” is an immersive club performance in which we explore how people react to the club and the performance when they are freely integrated from the start as equal participants in the event, and to what extent their willingness to let go and engage with one another can induce psychedelic states even without the use of substances.

Amid club lights, substance use, and bass, spaces of freedom and collective ecstasy unfold in nightclubs—we break free from our everyday lives, shatter the boundaries of society, and forget the social roles we assume outside the dance floor.

The “Psychedelic Social Club” explores this complex social space: Clubs are socio-cultural spaces where personal boundaries can be tested or social boundaries dissolved. Like theaters, clubs create spaces for escaping everyday life and coming together. Since time immemorial, dance and collective celebration have made it possible to process stress, fears, and emotions and to slip away from everyday life for a moment. Movement and rhythm thereby create not only individual experiences of happiness, but also connecting moments that transcend cultural, linguistic, and political boundaries. The Psychedelic Social Club therefore views dancing not as mere escapism, but as a cultural practice with transformative potential for mental health and community. The focus is on dance as a unique form of connection: Through synchronization, imitation, and physical closeness, not only do movements align, but so do inner rhythms. This creates a deep sense of belonging— even among people who were previously strangers. This connection fosters openness, empathy, and a willingness to collaboratively devise new solutions. Against the backdrop of increasing social division, the Psychedelic Social Club reimagines the club space: moving away from the often anonymous (consumption) venue toward a social space of possibility. As a living laboratory, it invites visitors to become an active part of the action and to experiment together with new forms of coexistence. Change emerges here as a collective experience, co-created and re-experienced within the community.

Our performance “Psychedelic Social Club” is thus a live experiment in which we invite the audience to break free from familiar ways of perceiving and thinking and to dream. By using the principles of psychedelic experience as a metaphorical framework, we challenge the boundaries of the everyday and facilitate an immersive experience that expands perception and opens up new perspectives. In our work, we combine performative elements, visual art, music, and interactive experiences that stimulate collective consciousness and actively involve the audience in the process of transformation and co-creation.

The “Psychedelic Social Club” is not a passive experience, but a social space where every individual has the chance to experiment with their own habits, beliefs, and truths. How far is each person willing and able to go in surrendering to a euphoric state—whether individually or in the collective high?