Stop Being Poor

A project about the precarious economy of hope.
Who can afford to dream? Stop Being Poor works with money and uses it to drive social change through art.

It has become a privilege to imagine a future. People who are occupied with (economic) survival in their everyday lives do not make grand plans. If you are caught up in the here and now, you can’t imagine a then and there. What if hopelessness is not the lack of hope, but a lack of space to imagine alternatives? We claim that the future belongs to those who can imagine it. And we invite you to speculate with us.

“Poverty isn’t a lack of character, it is a lack of cash!” (Rutger Bregmann)

This project will change your life. For Stop Being Poor Studio Julian Hetzel takes the equivalent of a basic income (from cultural funding) and gives it to one person for one year. In other words: someone will receive €15.000. This money is an invitation to escape the world of needs and to enter the world of desires.

Usually, it is the CEOs and technocrats running the governments who decide which futures are possible. In this project, established power structures are turned upside down. The decision is entrusted to an alternative expert committee consisting of a group of homeless people living on the streets of Stuttgart.

Between 11—13 and 16—19 June 2026, the jury will conduct public interviews. The Finale takes place on 21 June 2026.
Everybody can participate. Apply at www.stopbeingpoor.today

The audience is invited to follow and to (binge-)watch the selection process.
Tickets for the finale on 21 June are available at the website of Theater RAMPE.

In times of cultural wars and unprecedented budget cuts, Studio Julian Hetzel and Theater RAMPE propose an absurd and radical gesture of self empowerment. Stop Being Poor isn’t a reality show about the most needy person, nor a charitable initiative, but an artistic action that blurs the boundaries between theater and reality.