Fennymore oder wie man Dackel im Salzmantel macht

What a strange town - where it rains constantly and all of us must wear a raincoat? And this weird Doctor Uhrengut who wants to become mayor for life? Fennymore has the right to vote. And so does the audience. But before election day, everyone roams the town and encounters Auntie Else in her pub The Salt-Baked Dachshund, sports coach Mr. Muckenthaler, the opinionated bicycle Monbijou and – wait a minute! – was that the Reaper over there?! An interactive performance that ends with the election - the outcome depends on the election results and will be determined all over again at the end each performance.

In this digital version, you will be able to participate in the election of the mayor in the video stream via the ‘class chat’. We will send you an envelope with everything you’ll need, so you won’t have to face this adventure unprepared. (For those who buy their tickets last minute after April 12th, this package is only available in a digital form.)

An adaption of the children’s novel Fennymore and the Brumella or How to salt-bake a Dachshund by Kirsten Reinhardt who writes children’s books, poems and texts for the theatre and occasionally a Berlin scene for the taz newspaper. She lives in Berlin-Wedding.

English telephone interpretation from the German landline will be offered on 18th of April.

For this piece we give you the following content warnings:
- We will discuss Manipulation.
- Abstract representations of death will be presented.

VOTE

on the analog version of
FENNYMORE ODER WIE MAN DACKEL IM SALZMANTEL MACHT
by Grete Pagan

A very friendly guy distributes paper hats made of newspaper against the rain. The audience (who by the way, is addressed as “Fennymore” in the singular throughout the play) is supposed to vote for him in return. A blue bicycle transports us into another world. We meet characters that let us know more or less directly what they want from us. Some are afraid, others need our help, some seem to be our friends. We get ice cream, occasionally a place to sit, are invited to party or to relax.

We are led through different rooms of the set and learn about life in a fictitious small town through the stories of its inhabitants. Their mayor would like to be elected for lifetime - and we seem to play a considerable role in this plan.

Very matter-of-factly, the audience is turned into the main protagonist and is therefore indispensable. The actors never step onto our toes: until the very end (of the election) we are never asked to behave in a certain way. We have the time to see for ourselves and in the end are allowed to decide what we think is right.

With ease, a lot of humour and relishing theatrics, director Sebastian Mauksch and the company create an immersive theatre adventure for a group of people, and we are repeatedly and emphatically reminded of what must be done for democracy. It depends on every single one of us and everyone - regardless of age - must have the opportunity to shape the society they live in. This very clear message is not put on a pedestal but is very subtly transported on all levels of experience and understanding throughout the performance - and so the play is a piece of theatre art that uses its inherent means to best express a great cause in a completely non-didactic way.