Little children, big problems.” (European Cultural News)
Far from adhering to children’s and youth theater cliché, this is an exciting performance with its inspiring moments.
“There is no good unless one does it.” Erich Kästner’s famous words are also the final words in this production of “Anna Louise and Anton” – now on stage at the Kasino am Schwarzenbergplatz, venue of the Burgtheater.
Responsible not only for stage direction but also for a new dramatization of the novel is Cornelia Rainer. Her version introduces the character of “the writer”, who represents none other than Erich Kästner himself. The author who literarily shaped at least two generations of children is recently resurfacing on the cultural scene. Partly, this is due to his social criticism, notions which also appears in “Anna Louise and Anton”. In the 1931 novel he lets two societal classes clash. The wealthy family Pogge with their sheltered daughter, nicknamed “Pünktchen”, meet Anton and his mother. The latter has had an operation and spends much time in the hospital, leaving her son alone in their rundown apartment. Rainer uses multiple diiferent casts for the children’s roles.
At the premiere Adriana Gerstner and Florian Klingler took on the parts of the protagonists. Adriana made a magnificent and lively Anna Louise, impossible to keep in check by either her family or the nanny, Miss Andacht. Adina Vetter, who played the nanny, was able to showcase her comedic talent with this role. Her mispronouncing of the start of words throughout the play was very amusing indeed! The way the characters are exaggerated helps us understand Anna Louise’s troubles and suits the whole ensemble well. Dirk Nocker is convincing as Anna Louise’s tense father. With his constant asking for his pills he annoys the housekeeper, Mrs. Berta (Brigitta Furgler) frequently. Sylvie Rohrer, who should have played his wife, became ill two days before the premiere. She was spontaneously replaced by Christina Cervenka, who had assisted in the production as a child mentor. Her performance seemed anything but improvised: Every gesture and sentence was spot-on, whether her character was plagued by migraine, hurrying to the theater, concerned for her daughter, or giving good advice to her husband.
This performance did not only prove strength of nerve, but also her theatrical qualities. Outstanding is the acting of Martin Schwab. He portrayed the writer among many other roles. Be it the watchman or the homeless, the chauffeur or the nurse, he is acting out with so many different personalities is a joy to watch. No more does he need than a change of tone or a small attribute to his costume to rekindle the magic of theater again.
Almost all of the stage was used by Rainer. The outlines of the two facing apartments are marked on the floor – a hint to the floor plan would be drawn on the floor later on. by Miss Andacht for her lover Robert. Dressed like a rascal and seducer of women with a hat, dress handkerchief and a pink jacket is Robert Reinagl. At the end of the performance he makes the children laugh heartily by wearing a completely different costume. About that, no more shall be revealed here. A tall refrigerator, a bed with linen, a big table with chairs and a black piano furnish the apartment of the Pogge family. By contrast, the apartment of the family Gast only has a small fridge, a single chair and a bed, even missing a mattress at the beginning. To highlight that they live in a bad area of town, a big black trash can is placed in front of their apartment.
The director starts off by telling the story at a slow and comprehensible speed. This serves well to help the audience get accustomed to all of the goings-on on stage. As both apartments are visible at all times, the simultaneous lives of the Pogges and Gasts can be followed in parallel. For Florian Klinger as Anton it is a fight for his and his mother’s survival. With a fine sense for nuances the boy manages to portray the desperation and anxiety, only to give in to his youthful spirit when he and Anna Louise sprint wildly across stage. His fellow student and arch nemesis, called Klepperbein, maintains a different strategy in dealing with life in the big city jungle. Actor Merlin Miglinci walks up to his opponent with a rolling gait and scares even the adults with his first attempts at blackmailing, much to his own amusement.
“Not to consider the adults in children theater is short-sighted, Cornelia Rainer explained in an interview. Her new staging proves, as have her works before, that she cares about the young as well as their guardians. The insertion of a poem painting an image of the night time in the city turns into social criticism in Brecht-like fashion. While the children maybe only grasp its atmosphere, to the adults it speaks on more than one level.There are two elements in addition to the accomplished acting, however, that make this production something special: For one it is the idea to let a children’s orchestra play live. Be it a speedy march, a waltz or a sad elegy.
They play on stage and sometimes even from the stalls. A piano solo can be found as well as a jazzier piece on the trumpet. These performances are done most professionally by the young musicians and have their unique charm. The theater thus becomes a complete artwork of live performing, including the music.
Moreover, Rainer manages with a trick to create a play within play situation. In it, the pace is quickened and one joke after another has the audience laughing. Humor and ingenuity also mark the scene in which Mrs. Berta has to call the police for help.Was taking in the Guests really a good deed for the Pogge family? Was it in the spirit of brotherly love, for which Erich Kästner called? Rainer does not say. It is up to the children to discuss with the parents on their way home whether or not they would have taken in Anton and his mother. Or, as a matter of fact, other needy families – and there are not few that would need help in our country these days. Far from adhering to children’s and youth theater cliché, this is an exciting performance with its inspiring moments.
Another Rainer production for the young is scheduled for next season at the Burgtheater Kasino. Hamlet, Ophelia and the others.