Onschuld

In Onschuld, Dea Loher presents a portrait in nineteen scenes of a curious group of trapped and desperate people in a small coastal town.

Two illegal African immigrants see a woman run into the sea and do nothing to stop her. One of them can no longer sleep from guilt, the other finds a plastic bag full of money and sees it as a sign from God. A blind woman dances naked in the Blue Planet nightclub so that men will be able to see her. A childless woman asks everyone to forgive her for her son’s crimes. A philosopher burns her books, beats her taciturn husband to death and believes only in the untrustworthiness of the world. An elderly woman with diabetes moves in with her daughter and son-in-law and then occupies all their living space. People meet each other and lose each other again.

Dea Loher (1964) is one of the most successful contemporary German authors. Her plays have often won awards and are frequently performed not only on German stages but also in the rest of Europe. Alize Zandwijk’s directing displays great affinity with Loher’s plays. Both show the absurdity of our everyday lives, our fragmented reality. With humour and a light touch they tell stories about powerlessness and show compassion towards lonely, questing and helpless humans.