Biedermann and the Arsonists

"Make Fire Burn Again!" shouted Mr. Biedermann as the city burned.

An absurd social satire by Max Frisch (1911–1991) — one of the major figures of German-language literature — subtitled by the author as "a didactic play without a moral". Mr. Biedermann is an honest man with a good reputation: as many times as he was accused, so many times was he acquitted. People like him never caused anything — they merely allowed it. What happens when businessman Biedermann finds himself face to face with arsonists whom he has been denying all along?

The production is based on an adaptation by Lukáš Jeníček and Tom Skopal and presents the play as a contemporary analysis of the petit bourgeois who chooses lies and hatred over truth, thereby bringing about the destruction of his city and its inhabitants.

Warning: The production addresses themes of violence. On stage, in keeping with the artistic vision, smoking occurs and smoke machines and stroboscopic effects are used.