Technology and The Enemy of the People

The Berlin Schaubühne makes a guest appearance in China with Ibsen’s Ein Volksfeind. The production has already been shown in more than 30 countries. After the first three performances in Beijing the guest performance will be cancelled. Officially, technical reasons are given for this. What does that mean? The headlights are broken, the stage technology is defective, the curtain is stuck, the radio frequencies are scarce?

Ibsen’s 1882 play is about the manipulability of public opinion, the question of what is truth and conviction. In Ostermeier’s production from 2012, the actors enter into a dialogue with the audience at the end of the performance. Thus you bring the theme into the present, into the world of experience of the spectators. According to Tobias Veit, director of the Schaubühne, in an interview with the D-Radio cultural magazine „Conclusion“, this also worked well at the first performance in Beijing. However, some seats in the auditorium remained empty, although the performance was supposedly officially sold out. The next two performances of the guest performance took place only with changes to the production, the dialogue with the audience was cancelled at the request of the organizer. But now all other planned performances have been cancelled. For technical reasons. Of course, this has nothing to do with the content or direction.

How good that theatre technology can once again serve as a scapegoat.

More information at Spiegel online

Spiegel online