ELU JA ARMASTUS

At the beginning, everything seems almost too good to be true: Irma lives with her cousin Lonni, the two are inseparable. They marvel at the electric light, the cinemas, and the beautiful clothes. Irma is due to start working in a printing press – maybe she can even publish her poems. The Great Depression forces women to ingratiate themselves with men however. Publisher Rudolf obsessively courts Irma; he has influence, interesting friends, and money. Not a bad catch these days, Irma reflects to herself as she whirls across his bohemian, booked-filled apartment.

Eedie, a farmer's son who had wanted nothing more than to bring her back home, follows her from the countryside but soon finds himself carried away amongst the revolutionary tide of sailors' revolts and the groups of uncompromising freedom-fighters. Irma seeks happiness in her private life and yet the happiness she finds in love is impotent in the face of Rudolf's continued erotic conquests and manipulative behaviour. This lavish, elegantly directed historical drama depicts a complex, manipulative love affair in which Irma is always more than simply the innocent country girl and who knows, or at least suspects, what she is letting herself in for. Meanwhile, the political storms of the interwar period rage outside, competing ideologies promise simple solutions, and powerful European neighbours stand ready to pounce. A time in which, for more than interpersonal reasons alone, private passions often end up in chaos.

Text: Tim Abele

Sat 08.11.I 12:30 I KAMMERBÜHNE I original version with English subtitles + simultaneous German translation