Madina unexpectedly breaks out into dance everywhere she goes. She appears quiet at first, reading the room in true Libra fashion, but before long, the entertainer in her takes over, and the world is her stage. Born in Nuremberg, Germany, in 1997, Madina has always been a singer, dancer and actor. While studying Musical Theatre in Munich, she was cast as Rose Granger-Weasley in Germany's inaugural production of Harry Potter and The Cursed Child, which she currently performs in Hamburg. In 2021, she was one of Germany's entrants to the Eurovision Song Contest, and she's performed at several music and theatre productions across the country. Finding herself in the spotlight of national stages as a Black German artist, Madina shares some of her reflections on diversity, high culture and tokenism. 

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On stages and magic  

"I go on stage to become anyone I want to be", Madina says. She did not originally set out to be a performer, but she always enjoyed the theatre world. "People suggested that I apply to castings, and I thought ', why not?' It just worked out, and I think that's what naturally happens when you genuinely enjoy what you do." Growing up as a very little Black girl, Madina used to wish for invisibility. "I wanted my body to be transparent so that I could see people before they saw me, and then decide if I wanted to appear in front of them or not", she remembers. The stage seemed to offer the possibility of transformation devoid of stereotypes––to be seen for what she wants to show, not what people decided to focus on. "I now know that that's a fallacy", she explains. "Yes, you can become anyone for a while. But it doesn't work in reverse: you can never leave behind who you are." She can step into another character, never another person. "My skin, my body shape, my type will never change. An audience doesn't leave their stereotypes at the door when they enter the theatre, and I don't leave my Blackness on the side when I go on stage."

On drama and parables 

Playing Rose Granger-Weasley is a dream come true for Madina, who grew up with Hermione Granger as her role model. The play, originally a British production, cast Black actors for Hermione and her daughter, long-overdue industry progress, in Madina's opinion. Taking active steps towards diversity is important in any context, but the Harry Potter series carries a special social and historical connotation in Germany. Casting someone mixed-race for a character that is often called a "half-blood", with "mudblood" as a slur for wizards of muggle (non-magic) origin, is symbolic of discourse around belonging and racial purity. "It's a parable about Hermione's muggle heritage", explains Madina. "It makes sense to embody her through someone who is also a 'half-blood'. In Germany, the story has its own special twist. It mirrors our fascist history and raises questions about our society." Thus, from being a small girl that identified with Hermione's intelligence, empathy and ability to solve problems, Madina grew into a performer coming to terms with her "half-bloodedness" and what it could offer her career. 

On art and Blackness

As an artist, Madina is torn between diversity efforts and tokenism. Rose is her breakout role. Harry Potter and The Cursed Child has invented a new genre of theatre, and this job is opening doors for her internationally. "It is artistic brilliance", she smiles with excitement. "Some scenes are film-like, others include dance, and then there's magic everywhere." However, sometimes she cannot help but wonder if she's primarily there because of her skin colour. "I know that I am talented", she asserts, "But that's not all of it." The number of Black Germans in theatre is low, and there is no way to know how much her type helped her in the end. "In this role, I realised that, as a Black woman, I cannot work without being a politic. I would like to see myself as an artist, but I will always be a Black artist. I wish it could be just my skill that matters, so I try to forget that I'm Black sometimes."

Madina says that she was initially drawn to musical theatre because of its historical openness to Black culture.  Lion King or Tina Turner made it easier for Black performers to aspire to be on stages that are usually white. As she entered the world of performance, Madina got tired of the strict genre separations and gained more trust in herself to break out of the musical theatre box. The fear of being tokenised follows her, but she also sees it as an opportunity to have an impact on young people. "If little girls see me perform in a production that is mostly white and believe that they can make it onto that stage, too, does it matter how I got there?", she wonders. 

On politics and "high culture" 

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Can art ever exist for the sake of art? Madine does not think so. "All art carries societal relevance and gives a political message. The claim that art can exist in and of itself is wishful thinking", she says adamantly. When it comes to high culture, which separates itself from the masses by demanding intellectualism and promising exclusivity, Madina believes that it is specifically important to have more diversity both on stage and in production. "Our stories and casts need to be changed so that we can change audiences", says Madina. She would like to work on stories that encapsulate all members of society and experiment with the different lived realities that are silenced by the narrow world views of theatre hierarchies. As a performer, she believes that representation and diversity in storytelling affect audiences more than it does the artist. "I am critical of the way the stage is politicised and people are tokenised, but I believe that having an impact on young people and challenging conservative audiences is worth it."

To overcome her own doubts, Madina works hard to perfect her craft and build unwavering confidence in her skills. With a performer like her in the spotlight, Germany is being given an opportunity to challenge its rigid views on identity and open its eyes to the wealth of people shaping art and public discourse. Rose is just the beginning of Madina's bright future.