“This is the first and last attempt by the animals of every continent to save the Earth. We demand immediate action!” With these unambiguous words, Paula the polar bear opens the Animals’ Conference.
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Atze Musiktheater Luftschloss
The situation on the planet is dire. The animals are threatened by water shortages and wars, while humans gather time and again to negotiate the fate of the world at fruitless conferences. They seem to have a monopoly on reason and refuse to even listen to the animals and their demands. With every encounter, the conflict between humans and animals escalates; with every encounter, the tone and language shift. What are we doing to our planet? Who is this “WE,” and to whom does the Earth belong?
With this production of Kästner’s famous story, director Andrea Pinkowski takes a completely free—one might say animalistic—approach.
The interplay of story, movement, and sound is shaped by a performative approach.
The animalistic essence is translated into double bass, percussion, guitars, flutes, and saxophone. Yet the story always remains at the forefront: What must animals do for humans to understand them? What sound and what action touch their hearts? What does the voice of the Earth sound like?
Even in Kästner’s original, children become the mediators between the intuitive animal world and the rational adult world.
The story of The Conference of the Animals calls on us to find ideas together for peaceful coexistence and a universal language. With this production, the famous parable becomes a musical-animalistic call to action against the sluggishness of the heart.
(in German)
