The school of dictators 

is bitterly serious and a farce at the same time: the holder of the highest and most responsible government office is a puppet. What is going on? When politics becomes a staging with the aim of deceiving the population, those who have no scruples about turning lies into truth win. Or can the deceivers end up being deceived themselves?  Erich Kästner wrote his play under the impression of the dictatorships of the first half of the 20th century - it has become a study of power as an end in itself that transcends time. Well-organized, unfeeling, unerring and self-alienated rulers are difficult to see through, even for the population - but they are the only chance!

The Ballhaus Prinzenallee and its team of directors and actors have developed a choreographic and playful production that finds images scene by scene, showing the seriousness in the absurdity and the satire in the reality. And since, in view of the shift to the right in Germany and the erosion of democratic institutions worldwide, this topic concerns us all, it is particularly logical that the ensemble of the production consists of trained actors, playful citizens and youth club players.
By: Erich Kästner
Director: Oliver Toktasch
Co-director: Lukas David Schmidt
Dramaturgy: Anne-Sylvie König
Set & costume design: Svantje Woltersdorf
Lighting design: Muhammed Ali Dönmez
Photo: Yanina Isla
With: Freya Kreutzkam, Jonas Broxtermann, Carole Jachtmann, Christian Bojidar, Stefan Reschke, Eva Reuss-Richter, Barbara Schaffernicht, Paula Lüdke, Monika Kneifel-Grobler, Jasmina El Far, Laura Kleinwort, Nelly Krafczyk, V Binas, Julia Grossmann, Jean-Joy Charle, Tabea Lübke, Alexander Thomalla, Lena Leyding, Jenö Stillmark, Eli Wersich, Marlene Germer, Nele Leiminger, Christian Geza

Language: German