Sympathy for the friendly – Wiener Zeitung Online

The Burkinabe revolution gave rise to a humanistic theatrical evening in Graz.© Lupi Spuma
The Burkinabe revolution gave rise to a humanistic theatrical evening in Graz.© Lupi Spuma

In Burkina Faso, there was a revolution in 2014, the dictator was sent to the desert. A smooth change, the revolutionaries went with spoons and brooms in the street. But director Jan-Christoph Gockel, coincidentally at a local theater festival, was impressed. In October of this year, he went there again with a group of ensembles from the Schauspielhaus in Graz. Four weeks in Africa and journey of personal experience. The result: a visually opulent aufmotzter, multimedia evening entitled "The revolution eats their children!".

The director, the actors (whose famous Julia Gräfner was the center of the force) and the puppeteer Michael Pietsch had grown together the previous year in the production Nestroy praised "The Order: the death of Danton "(Heiner Müller / Georg Büchner). Well, they still packed the Danton dolls.

Too much missionary zeal

Missionary zeal first: with the dolls hanging on the ropes, you will "explain the principle of democracy," they say at the beginning. The lesson on democracy tinged with postcolonialism does not occur on the ground, the disillusion immediately follows: it is enough to tell in the former French colony of the Upper Volta of Liberty that Equality, Fraternity would be a pettiness. "Danton's death in Africa is over so quickly," said one of the team members with a shrug. And not just because a suitcase is not there.

The camera was still running, even during the preparations for the trip to Graz. What am I waiting for, how is it in the group? The questions could have been imagined by an exemplary lay theorist involved in development aid. The most demanding audience capacities are expressed, in other words: an hour of well-being would have been better suppressed.

Finally, the theater people continue to scratch and land there, which is really worth telling: Thomas Sankara was the African Che Guevara, who brought it sweetly and polite speech to the president. He gave this country the name of Burkina Faso, "Land of the Right Man". In 1984, Sankara delivered a remarkable speech at the UN and campaigned as a black African networker against secret colonialism. Sankara's reign ended abruptly after four years and was badbadinated in 1987. His successor, the long-time dictator Blaise Compaore, expelled from the country during the mild revolt of 2014, probably played in the game.

The people of the Graz theater have spoken to some of the former leaders of opinion. There were also movie scenes shot again. In a kind of fictional reality, the actors of Graz complained of the events of 2014. Opponents Thomas Sankara and Blaise Compaore meet us in the form of puppets (they were hastily carved on the spot). Danton on stage (Florian Köhler) will easily dress the allegory of France or even Europe. This Europe lovingly takes the doll Compaore. What would Europe be without its black African potentates by its graces?

Artist at work

Of course, everyone understands the broom and the wooden spoon, which goes without saying for enlightened Europeans. Nevertheless, this is true for Jan-Christoph Gockel and the Grazer Ensemble, almost too committed: there were artists at work and no journalists. The "research" was exclusively on this side, from which all the sympathies of the European humanist perspective are found.

Not to mention: Ougadougou, the capital of Burkina Faso, is a meeting place frequented by many European actors of the theater, in particular during the annual festival Récréâtrales. Christoph Schlingensief, who has set up his opera village in Burkina Faso, has already enjoyed the favorable climate for colorful theater birds.

Graz production has always been visually captivating. The jubilation that followed the first was great.