Willi Kellers is a drummer and theatre composer. He studied music at the universities of Münster and Detmold and is considered one of the best jazz drummers in Europe. He works regularly with Phil Minton, Peter Brötzmann, Willem Breuker, Frank Wright, Albert Mangelsdorf, Manfred Schoof, Keith Tippet, Julie Driscoll, among others, and has played at all European festivals and many festivals worldwide. In 2025 he was awarded the 1st Brandenburg Jazz Prize.
Kellers has written over 30 stage scores for Dimiter Gotscheff. He has also composed music for productions by Heiner Müller, Waechter, Franz Xaver Kroetz, Färberböck, George Tabori – and several times for Thorsten Lensing: “Sweeney Agonistes”, “Snow White”, “Run to the Sea. An Idyll” and “The Cherry Orchard”. “Dancing Idiots” is his fifth collaboration with Thorsten Lensing.
As of: December 2025