Embedded Files
Friedrich Dürrenmatt's world famous play,
presented in English language
(translation by James Kirkup).
19, 20, 21, 26, 27 & 28 May 2011 at 19:30
& matinee Sunday 22 May 2011 at 14:00
In view of recent events we have
decided to make a donation of 10%
of ticket income from The Physicists
to ESA's Humanitarian Relief Fund
for Japan.
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The Physicists (Die Physiker) is a satirical drama, often recognized as the most impressive work of the Swiss writer Friedrich Dürrenmatt.
Set against the background of the Cold War and the many advances in science and nuclear technology, the play deals with questions of scientific ethics and mankind's ability to handle its intellectual responsibilities. Though set in the 1960s, the themes of the play are - unfortunately - timeless. The play was first performed in Zürich 1962 and has remained popular ever since.
Cast:
Inspector Voss - David Andrews
Matron Boll - Moira Grundy
Police Doctor - Deena Batten
Police Photographer - Tim Colpman
Police Stenographer - Christoph Weinandt
Nurse Irene - Linda Morrey / Myriam Pecchioli
Patient "Newton" - Mark Grundy
Fräulein Dr. von Zahnd - Ruth Armstrong
Patient "Einstein" - Eric Beveridge
Frau Lina Rose - Emma Wright
Oskar Rose - Donald Phillips
Adolf-Friedrich - Lucy Beaven
Wilfried-Kaspar - Myriam Pecchioli
Jörg-Lukas - Hannah Beaven
Patient Möbius - Alastair McDonald
Nurse Monika - Lea Ostmann
Chief attendant Sievers - Andreas Schepers
Attendant McArthur - Dick Waite
Attendant Murillo - Ioannis Dimakakos
Directed by Melanie Zander
Stage Management Team: Simon Allan, Henry Walls, Adam Miller
Stage Design: Nigel Link
Stage Building: Nigel Link, Dick Waite, Adam Miller, Simon Allan, Henry Walls, Eric Beverdige, Moira Grundy, Mark Grundy, Melanie Zander
Lights & Sound: Frank Albrecht, Stefano de Padova
Music: Kreutzer Sonata played by Natalia Lynch (violin) and Birgit Abt (piano), violin solos played by Georg Bednarek
Props: Sara Gonzales, Moira Grundy
Costumes: Moira Grundy
Poster & Programme: Bruno Sousa, Melanie Zander
Production: Melanie Zander, Mark Grundy
A foreword by Professor Walter Flury
“The Physicists” by Friedrich Dürrenmatt
The satirical drama was first performed on 20 February 1962 at the Zurich theatre.
The exclusive Cherry Trees sanatorium caters to a very special clientele. All three of its current "residents" are brilliant physicists - and all three are quite insane. There's wild-haired Albert Einstein, who tries to soothe his tortured spirit by playing the violin; there's prim-and-proper Sir Isaac Newton, who hides his liquor in the fireplace where his keepers will never think to look; and Möbius, the most brilliant of them all, and perhaps the most insane. Overseeing the sanatorium is Fräulein Doktor Mathilde von Zahnd, a hunchbacked alienist and rich heiress.
Oh, there's one last thing the physicists have in common - they've all murdered their nurses at one time or another, much to the annoyance of hyperactive police inspector Voss ….
The Physicists is considered to be Friedrich Dürrenmatt's masterpiece of espionage, nuclear proliferation, and the dilemma of the responsibility of the individual to society. Viewed in the context of the tragedy of Fukujima the play appears to be timeless.
Who was Dürrenmatt? The famous Swiss dramatist passed away more than twenty years ago. He was a poet of the paradox and the grotesque; his intention was not to provoke but to raise awareness.
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