The pupils are already fascist-minded - and their young teacher also denies his humanist ideals. He is once again confronted with the unreflected ideology of the dictatorial system when seething conflicts in the Easter camp get out of control and even a murder is committed. Written in 1937 and published by a Dutch publisher in exile, Horváth's novel was a great success and was quickly translated into many languages. In Germany, the book was placed on the "list of harmful and undesirable literature" in January 1938 due to its "pacifist tendencies". Horváth unravels a gripping crime story and at the same time paints a powerful and harrowing picture of his time. He depicts the coldness and hypocrisy of fascist society, in which a lost youth grows up without freedom and without ideals. The teacher's questions about responsibility, morality and the necessity of his own actions are becoming more urgent again today.
Director Jakob Weiss has already delighted young audiences in Karlsruhe with
Karlsson from the Roof. After productions in Esslingen, Göttingen, Berlin and Hanover, the Akademie Schloss Solitude fellow returns to the INSEL.
