Winter Solstice

 

By Roland Schimmelpfennig
Translated by David Tushingham

Themes: Family & Relationships, Extremism & Prejudice Truth & Betrayal

Genre: Comedy, Political Theatre

Key Scenes: 12.1-12.20 (2M); 2.1 to 2.14 (2F, 1M); 17.56 to 18.1 (1F, 2M)

Age recommendation: 16+ (racist innuendo)

Number of characters: 7 (4F, 3M)

Country: Germany

Original language: German

Description:
It is Christmas Eve in a liberal, middle-class household in modern day Germany. Bettina and her husband Albert aren’t happy. Bettina’s mother, Corinna, is staying for the holidays, which is awkward because she met a man on the train and now she’s invited him around for drinks...

While Albert and Bettina bicker, Corinna will say anything to draw attention to herself, and Marie is constantly underfoot. Rudolph, Corrina’s unexpected stranger from the train, receives an awkward welcome but soon ingratiates himself within the family with this suave, charming persona. That is, until he casually reveals racist, supremacist theories and ideas with alarming implications given Germany’s dark history. Will anyone challenge Rudoph’s seemingly-banal interjections, at the cost of disrupting the complacent comfort of this well-to-do family?

Family, betrayal and the inescapable presence of the past reverberate through this razor-sharp comedy.

The play was originally written in German and was translated into English in 2017 by David Tushingham.

The play is written as a single scene.

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+ DETAILS

Author: Roland Schimmelpfennig

Original language: German

Publisher: Bloomsbury, 2017

World Premiere (in the Engl. lang.): January 2017, Orange Tree Theatre

Education Pack Resource Writer: Alia Alzougbi

+ CHARACTERS

ALBERT, no older than 40s, possibly 30s, Bettina’s partner, a classic intellectual, with glasses, seemingly careless

BETTINA, no older than 40s, possibly 30s, Albert’s partner, slim, good looking, creative, highly intelligent

RUDOLPH, mid 60s, slim, good-looking with a charming smile, Corinna’s friend from the train

CORINNA, Bettina’s mother

KONRAD, a friend of the family and a childhood friend of Albert’s, a painter

MARIE, 8 years old, Bettina and Albert’s daughter, we never see her

NAOMI, Albert’s publisher and mistress, we never see her

+ PLAY TEXT BLURB

Christmas Eve.

Bettina and her husband Albert aren’t happy.

Bettina’s mother is staying for the holidays.

Which is awkward.

Not least because Bettina’s mother met a man on the train.

And now she’s invited him around for drinks...

Family, betrayal and the inescapable presence of the past reverberate through the UK premiere of Roland Schimmelpfennig’s razor-sharp comedy.

Buy the play text here


Credits

Alia Alzougbi
Educational Resource Writer