Image: pg
Commissioned by Theater Basel, Ewald Palmetshofer set about rewriting Gerhart Hauptmann’s naturalistic classic “Before Sunrise” from 1889 in 2017. The 44-year-old, who was born in Linz, grew up in Mönchdorf in the Mühlviertel and is one of the most important contemporary playwrights in the German-speaking world, turned almost everything inside out in the play, with the exception of a single sentence by Hauptmann. On Saturday (February 18, 7.30 p.m.) his “Before Sunrise” will premiere in the Linzer Kammerspiele (director: Stephan Suschke).
Hauptmann’s inherited alcoholism in a farming family that had made money from coal deposits takes a back seat to Palmetshofer’s characters’ depressions. The dark gray plot revolves around the respectably situated Krause family in a nameless town. Son-in-law Thomas Hoffmann takes over the business, Martha is expecting her first child. When Hoffmann’s friend from college, the journalist Alfred Loth, visits, fractures in the family and the divisions in society become visible. State theater dramaturg Martin Mader: “Palmetshofer masterfully succeeds in revealing the unspoken tensions.” Playing: Lutz Zeidler, Gunda Schanderer, Lorena Emmi Mayer, Angela Waidmann, Julian Sigl, Alexander Julian Meile, Benedikt Steiner. (pg)
Kammerspiele Linz: “Before sunrise” by Ewald Palmetshofer, premiere: February 18, dates until May 5. landestheater-linz.at
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I am an author and journalist who has worked in the entertainment industry for over a decade. I currently work as a news editor at a major news website, and my focus is on covering the latest trends in entertainment. I also write occasional pieces for other outlets, and have authored two books about the entertainment industry.
