Press Releases

15.12.09

More than theatre plays

“To act on stage means to me to experience life of another fictive person and to compare to my own,” says Johannes Hallermeier, student of the 12^th year at Salem International College in Überlingen.

For weeks students of the final year of the International Baccalaureate (IB2) had studied different on acts in the subject “Theatre Arts” and had written pieces themselves. This Thursday the performances in the Aula of campus Härlen start.

Traditionally the one act is a short piece, that deals with a conflict situation and outlines it. For example the self written piece of Adrian Gonzalez, student of IB2:

A woman, on the brink of marrying Max, does not know of her husbands-to-be homosexuality and that  he has fallen in love with her brother Daniel. From this tragic situation the play develops a treatise about love in general. Actress Erika Arnold, year 13, admires how much complexity and courage is comprised in the oiece aif 18-year-ols Adrian Gonzales. “For this play of only 10 minutes Adrian put a lot of time and effort, because the topic is so different, so tabooed. This really needs a lot of courage.”

A lot of work is behind Simone Sterns (IB2) production, too:“ It was the first time that i directed a play. It is very interesting to grapple with the overall picture of a piece.” Light, stage setting, costumes, even the least detail has to be put on scene and in the briefings for the actors. Love plays an important part in Simone Sterns piece “Cover”. The Menage a trois of a couple and their friend develops into a love drama with insidous entanglements, a web of deceit and a nightmarish atmosphere.

But also cheerfil one acts are part of the colourful potpourri, which put together in many different ways by the students. Amongst them “The moron of Helsingör”, an Austrian parody on Halet. Shakespeare´s figures are attacked in different dialects.

Apart from fun and serious insight the acting has a practical effect for the teenagers, comments Erika Arnold: “Being on stage one gains a totally new emotion for his or her body whicht remains in every day life. One develops a sensation for one´s own strength and weeknesses.” For Gregor Troubat, who plays Horatio in “The moron of Helsingör”, the genesis of the plays is especially excting: “During the rehearsal a very special group dynamics developed. Through the intensive cooperation we got to know each other from completely new points of view. This is rather different from what we are used during classes.”

But after many rehearsals, discussions and new perceptions the students and their teacher, the actor and director Keith LeFever, are looking forward to the core of theatre: the shows.

Jonas Rosenbrück