My Grandfather in the Marshall Islands / 2024 – Bookable
or a journey into the wondrous world of German family narratives
In addition to childhood memories, puppeteer Vanessa Valk inherited two photo albums and a diary from her grandfather, which document his trip to the Marshall Islands in 1911. In family stories, Grandpa was considered a "hero." He stayed there for three years until the patriot left a "South Sea woman" behind on the islands and returned to fight for his country in the war. From today's perspective, how do we tell the story of a true colonialist whose heroic anecdotes in family lore overshadowed his later Nazism?
It is this sensitive and precisely arranged combination of information and emotion, of German and family history, staged with powerful theatrical devices and images, that makes this play so gripping and entertaining.
– Marion Klötzer, Badische Zeitung
Artistic direction: Jens Burde, Dorothee Metz, Johannes Frisch, Vannessa Valk
Director: Dorothee Metz
Stage/video: Jens Burde Video: Mark Klotz
Music: Johannes Frisch
Cast: Vanessa Valk, Johannes Frisch, Jens Burde
Running time: 64 min. Recommended for young people and adults aged 16 and over.
Supported by the Landesverband Freie Tanz- und Theaterschaffende Baden-Württemberg e. V. (State Association of Independent Dance and Theater Artists of Baden-Württemberg) with funds from the Ministry of Science, Research, and the Arts of the State of Baden-Württemberg and the Akademie der Künste (Academy of Arts) with funds from the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media as part of the NEUSTART KULTUR program and the Cultural Office of the City of Freiburg.
A production by Theater TIER in cooperation with E-WERK Freiburg and Theater Freiburg.