Yggdrasil
Stories from the Edda
“An ash tree I know, it is called Yggdrasil, a tall tree, showered with shiny wet;
from there comes the dew that falls in the valleys, evergreen it stands above the fountain of Urd;
from there come women, many-knowing Norns, from the well that lies beneath the tree.”
Whether Lord of the Rings, God of War or Vikings - they all draw from one of the most incredible storybooks in the world: The Edda. And there is a good reason for that:
The Norse mythological world is rich in imagery and language, its characters Odin, Thor and Loki are the playmakers in a story leading from the creation of the world to its downfall, told from the perspective of the seers, the Norns, who hold the threads of fate in their hands.
What happens if they let them go? If the balance of the world of the gods is disturbed? If the connection to the mythical world no longer exists? If the divisions between the worlds of gods, men, of giants and animals, of man and woman get mixed up? Wit, heroism and adventure meet dystopia and apocalypse.
Theatre ANU creates a unique evening of storytelling with three storytellers and a cellist, based on the fantastic legends of the North. A large part can also be performed on trees.
Directed + written by: Bille Behr
Text: EDDA translations according to Stefan Behr, Neil Gaiman, Felix Genzmer, Wilhelm Jordan, Arnulf Krause, Karl Simrock
Scenography: Martin Thoms
Sculptures: Gernot Ehrsam
Sound + Light: Rebecca Dirler, Anne Sturm
With:
Skuld / Loki's children / Baldur's death: Bärbel Aschenberg
Werdandi / The Treasures of the Gods / Freyja's Wedding: Johanna Malchow
Urd / The Builder / The Poet Met: Kathleen Rappolt
Cello + composition: Nicholas Herdieckerhoff
Premiere open-air stage version 2021 THEATERNATUR Festival of the Performing Arts, Waldbühne Benneckenstein
Premiere 31.07.2020 in the framework of the Festival
ANOTHER SUMMER. Bad Hersfeld - City of stories
Another Summer
A cooperation between the Bad Hersfeld Festival, the ANU Theatre, the town of Bad Hersfeld and its citizens.
This summer everything is different. Bad Hersfeld becomes a city of stories. Actors, musicians, singers and visual artists will play, tell stories, paint and make music in very special places in the town: in the Abbey ruins, in the Abbey Park, in the town church, in the streets and squares, in the Johann Sebastian Bach House, in the book café, in the museums in the Abbey and in the spa gardens.
World literature and reports, dime novels and poetry, works by great composers - from classical to jazz - will be heard and seen, monologues, dialogues, scenes, reports, exhibitions, installations, comedy and tragedies, as well as very private stories and historical events from the town of Bad Hersfeld.
"I am delighted," says Festival Director Joern Hinkel, "that many artists who were supposed to be on the big stage with us have spontaneously agreed to take part in our 'other summer'. There will be no Bad Hersfeld Festival this year 2020, and the Festival fanfare will not sound. The festival staff have joined forces with many cultural workers from the city and the region, together we will roll up our sleeves and see how we can make the best of the situation."
Here is our digital catalogue. Please click on the image to browse.
