The historic Volksbühne theater in Berlin has a new artistic director. Matthias Lilienthal’s ideas are somewhat unconventional, some would think. In June, he announced he would have a swimming pool installed right in front of the cultural institution he will be heading. Ha ha ha, what a joke, right? Wrong.
He actually implemented his genius idea. According to Lilienthal, “the Volksbühne also considers it a theatrical event when two people splash each other with water.” He’s right: Why would a theater cast just hide in its building and present Brecht when it can splash its audience in a giant pool? He also said the pool was meant as a protest against the decay of Berlin’s infrastructure, including schools, universities, trains and swimming pools. There you go.
By now, the pool is completed. It is 25 meters (82 feet) long and the water is 130 centimeters (51 inches) deep. It does look a little weird. The whole thing consists of countless wooden boards covered with a giant and thick plastic sheet. Will it hold? Probably. If not, there will be a tsunami on Berlin’s Rosa Luxemburg Square. Oh yes, there’s a first time for everything.
The best part? Anyone may jump in free of charge. But visitors do need free “time window tickets” which they can get here, starting today.
Lilienthal’s predecessor René Pollesch had suddenly died two years ago. The new stage director knows his theater since he worked there years ago. Since, he headed the HAU, a smaller theater in Berlin, as well as the Kammerspiele in Munich.
Apart from the pool, some inventive premieres will be happening at Volksbühne later this year, including “House of Hopes”. Again, this is not a traditional play with actors doing their thing on stage, but rather a tour through the Volksbühne building, which they will also present in English. According to the theater, participants will be looking into recent history, including the peaceful revolution in the former GDR.
“The building’s architecture is the setting for ten autobiographical accounts from countries across the globe”, the Volksbühne announced. “These stories are full of hope, telling of the Esperanza during the campaign against the Pinochet dictatorship, the Speranță for freedom following the execution of the Ceaușescus, recalling the Nadzieja of the trade union movement in Poland, and expressing Omid for a less cruel Iranian state after the death of Khamenei.”
For now, splashing each other with water will do. The fun commences this Friday, August 7th.
