The Berliner Theatertreffen
The 53rd Theatertreffen jury has picked ten very different productions for the 2016 Berliner Festspiele.
Each year, the German-speaking theatre world eagerly awaits the day on which the Theatertreffen jury announces its selection of ten remarkable productions that will be invited to the Theatertreffen in Berlin. This year saw critics make their choice from a total of almost 400 plays from Germany, Austria and Switzerland – a Theatertreffen invitation is something like the Oscar of the German-speaking theatre world. According to Theatertreffen director Yvonne Büdenhölzer, the productions differ greatly, yet all explore social upheavals and their consequences for individuals. “A new generation of directors has arrived at the Theatertreffen. More than half of the participating artists have been invited for the first time”, says Büdenhölzer.
Dadaism and the Middle East conflict
One production that has been invited is for example “der die mann” from the Volksbühne in Berlin, which is based on texts by Konrad Bayer. This is a surreal spoken opera in the Dadaist style created by the director Herbert Fritsch. The directors Clemens Sienknecht and Barbara Bürk at the Deutsches Schauspielhaus in Hamburg have transformed Theodor Fontane’s well-known novel into a wild show entitled “Effi Briest – allerdings mit anderem Text und auch anderer Melodie” (Effi Briest – though with a different text and a different melody). In “Stolpersteine Staatstheater” (Tripping Stones State Theatre) at the Badisches Staatstheater Karlsruhe, Hans-Werner Kroesinger explores the stories behind the Stolpersteine – special stones sunk into pavements which bear plaques to commemorate victims of the Nazi regime.
Yael Ronen’s “The Situation” from the Maxim Gorki Theater in Berlin, which examines not only everyday life in a shared flat in the city’s Neukölln district but also the Middle East conflict, is realistic and highly political. Few people probably expected Ersan Mondtag’s play “Tyrannis” to be invited; it features actors from the Staatstheater Kassel performing with their eyes closed. The director Daniela Löffner is also a festival newcomer: she has brought “Väter und Söhne” (Fathers and Sons), an adaptation of Ivan Turgenev’s novel from the Deutsches Theater in Berlin, to the stage.
The Berliner Festspiele will be staging the 53rd Theatertreffen from 6 to 22 May 2016. It will be rounded off by performances and events from the Stückemarkt and the International Forum, as well as by Theatertreffen Camp talks and discussions, concerts and award ceremonies.
World Theatre Day on 27 March 2016
