Käthchen of Heilbronn

by Heinrich von KleistDirected by Clemens Bechtel

Follow You follow

Premiere

Tickets

There are currently no future schedules of this show.

Synopsis

The author

Heinrich von Kleist was born in 1777 in Frankfurt on the Oder, in a family of Pomeranian noblemen. Following family tradition, he embraces a military career in 1792, which he trades, seven years later, for the study of Mathematics, Physics, Law and Economy. In 1802, however, he decides to focus on writing, turning into a playwright, prose writer and columnist. In his final years he contributed as an editor to Phöbus art magazine.Kleist commits suicide in 1811 in Wannsee near Berlin: "...truth be told, there was no escape for me on this earth". His most important dramatic works …

The author

Heinrich von Kleist was born in 1777 in Frankfurt on the Oder, in a family of Pomeranian noblemen. Following family tradition, he embraces a military career in 1792, which he trades, seven years later, for the study of Mathematics, Physics, Law and Economy. In 1802, however, he decides to focus on writing, turning into a playwright, prose writer and columnist. In his final years he contributed as an editor to Phöbus art magazine.Kleist commits suicide in 1811 in Wannsee near Berlin: "...truth be told, there was no escape for me on this earth". His most important dramatic works are The Schroffenstein Family; The Broken Jug; Robert Guiskard; Amphitryon; Penthesilea; Käthchen of Heilbronn; Armin's Battle; The Prince of Homburg.  About the playAppearing before a Secret Sacred Court in Westfalia, count Wetter of Strahl is accused of having bewitched young Käthchen of Heilbronn who – being no more than 15 years old – inexplicably follows the count wherever he goes. Strahl ensures the judges he is not to be blamed for the girl's condition, but he does admit being attracted to her.In the meantime, Kunigunda of Thurneck launches territorial claims upon the count's Stauffen dukedom, as she sets her mind not only on acquiring the estates, but also Strahl, their owner. The count fails to see the trickery behind Kunigunda's charm, and he proposes to her, especially since he sees the materialization of a prophetic dream in which an angel foretold him he would marry the emperor's daughter. Kunigunda's beauty, however, turns out to be pretence, a transient outcome as a result of strange treatments. A calculated, scheming and ambitious woman, Kunigunda realizes the danger posed by rival Käthchen, and she even decidedly takes her chances in killing her.But Käthchen, too, has a dream in which an angel ordained Count Strahl as her lover, a fact which always endows the girl with courage and unimaginable powers. Thus, Käthchen hastily forewarns the count on the attack of an army on Kunigunda's castle.But before the holy omen comes true and she eventually comes to walk to the altar as a princess of Suabia, Käthchen still has to go through another ultimate trial...The play Käthchen of Heilbronn was elaborated in 1808, two years later being presented as a world premiere in Vienna. With Käthchen of Heilbronn, the universal literature acknowledges Kleist for authoring one of its most complex works, effusing beauty and odd fascination at the same time.

Distribution

Georg Peetz

Împăratul

Boris Gaza

Friedrich Wetter, count of Strahl

Horia Săvescu

Gottschalk, the servant

Ida Jarcsek-Gaza

Brigitte, maid in the count's house

Christine Cizmaş

Kunigunde von Thurneck

Andrea Nistor

Rosalie, chambermaid

Harold Schmeltz

Theobald Friedeborn, Heilbronn armourer

Olga Török

Käthchen

Radu Vulpe

Maximilian, castelan de Freiburg

Ciprian Lungu

Contele renan de Stein, logodnicul Kunigundei

Rareş Hontzu

Eginhardt von der Wart

Alex Halka

Graf Otto von der Flühe, emperor's councillor

Dana Borteanu

Judge

Gabriella Kereszturi

Judge

Daniel Ghidel

Cherub 1

Ina Ionescu

Cherub 2

Iosif Csorba

Dock worker

Technical direction

Laurence Rippel

Dramaturgy

Lucian Vărșăndan

Director

Clemens Bechtel

Choreography (collaborator)

Liana Iancu

Choreography

Clemens Bechtel

Stage speech

Simon Schlingplässer

Reviews


""Oldies but goldies" – that was the secret reaction among the spectators at the first premiere of the new GSTT season, "Käthchen of Heilbronn" by Heinrich von Kleist. (…) The stage hosts a genuine action thriller with duels, murder attempts, intrigues and betrayal. (…) German director Clemens Betchel emphasizes by all possible means Kleist's modernity. At the heart of the performance lie atemporality, the power and beauty of the German language. (…) The strongest emphases are laid by the young generation of actors of the German stage: chief among them, Boris Gaza, playing count Strahl, performs an exquisite act, impressive …

from: GSTT premiere: a celebration of the German language, by Balthasar Waitz, in: Banater Zeitung, October 3rd 2007


""Oldies but goldies" – that was the secret reaction among the spectators at the first premiere of the new GSTT season, "Käthchen of Heilbronn" by Heinrich von Kleist. (…) The stage hosts a genuine action thriller with duels, murder attempts, intrigues and betrayal. (…) German director Clemens Betchel emphasizes by all possible means Kleist's modernity. At the heart of the performance lie atemporality, the power and beauty of the German language. (…) The strongest emphases are laid by the young generation of actors of the German stage: chief among them, Boris Gaza, playing count Strahl, performs an exquisite act, impressive through the accuracy of his theatrical speech. Christine Cizmaş, still a student, plays the part of Kunigunda of Thurneck, displaying noticeable emotion and substance. Käthchen's part is played -affectionate and coyly – by both Sînziana Nedin (invited in the show) and Olga Török."

Search