NIGHTSCAPE

ABOUT

A dark comedy with a hint of bitterness. Full of ingenious dialogues, contemporary topics, and pressing questions. For example, for how much would you sell your consciousness and how should you treat a heritage of the past, a heritage full of shame of the whole society? A thought-provoking play by a contemporary German writer full of  verbal humour, reflections, and plot twists.

A brother and a sister enter the house of their recently deceased father to deal with his belongings. They find a painting in the attic. Landscape, church, dusk. Why would their father hide the painting? He was never into art. And what’s that signature in the corner? A. Hiller. Wait, isn’t the second letter more of a “t”? Is the painter Adolf Hitler? Before going into politics, he was a painter of landscapes and wished to study fine arts – but was always rejected. Why would their father hide something like that and how did he get hold of it? Is it even okay to own something like that, or to sell something like that? How much would they sell the Hitler’s painting for? The siblings decide to bring it to an expert…

No one expected to get passed down such a thing. One could buy a lot of things for the money earned from the painting… But the moral side? Is there any moral side? Is it morally okay to grow fat on someone who caused the deaths of millions of people? To earn money from that infamous mass murderer? Do money or ethical values hold greater importance?

The night is setting upon the landscape in the painting. Is it also setting upon our culture, values, and civilisation? Is the night setting upon the free land?

Premiere on 17 April 2025 at the Theatre “12“

Creatives

Czech translation: Michal Kotrouš

Stage director: Vojtěch Štěpánek

Choice of music: Vojtěch Štěpánek

Dramaturg: Pavel Gejguš

Set designer: Hana Kelar Knotková

Costume designer: Hana Kelar Knotková

Performance manager: Věra Kryšková

Prompter: Jana Hořínová