Die AffenPhoto: © Arno Declair, 2020
Die Affen, Photo: © Arno Declair, 2020 
Die AffenPhoto: © Arno Declair, 2020
Die Affen, Photo: © Arno Declair, 2020 
Die AffenPhoto: © Arno Declair, 2020
Die Affen, Photo: © Arno Declair, 2020 
Die AffenPhoto: © Arno Declair, 2020
Die Affen, Photo: © Arno Declair, 2020 
Die AffenPhoto: © Arno Declair, 2020
Die Affen, Photo: © Arno Declair, 2020 
Die AffenPhoto: © Arno Declair, 2020
Die Affen, Photo: © Arno Declair, 2020 
Die AffenPhoto: © Arno Declair, 2020
Die Affen, Photo: © Arno Declair, 2020 
Die AffenPhoto: © Arno Declair, 2020
Die Affen, Photo: © Arno Declair, 2020 
Die AffenPhoto: © Arno Declair, 2020
Die Affen, Photo: © Arno Declair, 2020 
Die AffenPhoto: © Arno Declair, 2020
Die Affen, Photo: © Arno Declair, 2020 
 

Die Affen

by Marius von Mayenburg
Director: Marius von Mayenburg
World Premiere
Globe

What if evolution has hit a dead end? If it is time to go backwards? Rupp has lost faith in humanity. He swerves off and puts the gears in reverse. He undergoes a backward development before the eyes of the world. His family still tries to convince him to shave the fur growing on his body or, in the very least, to hide it under clothing. But his speech also starts to change, his behaviour takes an increasingly animalistic turn, he crouches, loses his upright posture and swings from tree to tree at the side of the road. At the same time, this hominid’s instinctive world of emotions is increasingly becoming a burden for those around him. At first, doctors care for him but he becomes more and more a case for biology and, ultimately, a zoological phenomenon. People want to heal him, understand, kill, save and analyse him, take selfies with him, free him, shoot him into space and have him stuffed after his death. But Rupp’s radical approach of human self-abolition does not remain an isolated case. There is increasing evidence that other people are following his example by climbing down buildings, sitting on car roofs and plundering the supermarkets in hordes. The urban infrastructure threatens to collapse. Rupp has not unleashed a revolution — but a devolution, the reverse of evolution, and the rest of humankind must react before it is too late. 

In his new comedy, writer and director Marius von Mayenburg, who recently directed »status quo« by Maja Zade and his own plays »Bang« and »Plastic« at the Schaubühne, searches for animal solutions to human crises.

Director: Marius von Mayenburg
Stage Designer and Video: Sébastien Dupouey
Costume Designer: Anneke Goertz
Music: Oliver Urbanski
Dramaturg: Maja Zade
Lighting Designer: Erich Schneider
Duration: ca. 140 minutes

Premieres on 11 March 2020

The production is supported by the Senate Department for Culture and Europe, Berlin, as part of the Festival International New Drama.