Adelaide Festival Hit - A German Life - to tour Australia

Adelaide Festival Hit - A German Life - to tour Australia

Producer John Frost has announced an Australian tour of the powerful hit of this year’s Adelaide Festival. A German Life is an extraordinary theatrical tour-de-force from three titans of the theatre –Robyn Nevin in an astonishing play by Christopher Hampton, directed by Neil Armfield.

In the Australian Premiere of this highly demanding 90-minute solo triumph, Robyn Nevin plays Brunhilde Pomsel, an unassuming woman with good shorthand skills who, almost by chance, came to work in Joseph Goebbels’s Propaganda Ministry.

Pomsel struggled to make ends meet as a secretary in Berlin during the 1930s, her many employers including a Jewish insurance broker, the German Broadcasting Corporation – eventually Goebbels –  before she emerged from the rubble near Hitler’s bunker waving a white pillowcase to the approaching Russian troops in April 1945.

Innocent or culpable? That’s the question at the heart of Christopher Hampton’s searching play, which was compiled from testimony of the then 103-year-old for the 2014 documentary A German Life. One of the last actively involved witnesses to the rise, fall and aftermath of the Third Reich, Brunhilde is intelligent and likeable, honest and credible. She doesn’t hide her youthful ignorance at the regime’s atrocities, her awe at finding herself at the heart of power, nor does she show any false remorse. Her refusal to think too hard about what was going on and focus instead on her own life, raises confronting questions for contemporary audiences. As social catastrophe creeps closer and only united action can stop it, how do we recognise that moment? How do we seize it?

Hampton’s play was first presented at the Bridge Theatre, London in 2019 and received extraordinary critical and popular acclaim during its recent Australian Premiere at the 2021 Adelaide Festival.

a superb, defining moment in Robyn Nevin’s acting career” – Adelaide Advertiser

Nevin is a theatre force to be reckoned with” – Stage Whispers

The genius of Nevin, and of director Neil Armfield, is to make Pomsel charming, even likeable” – Australian Financial Review

Neil Armfield’s astutely understated production … The extraordinary solo performance by Robyn Nevin brings Brunhilde fully into focus” – The Australian

Features a pitch-perfect solo performance from Robyn Nevin, among the most accomplished I’ve seen from this formidable actor” – The Saturday Paper

Tickets are on sale in Canberra, Brisbane and Melbourne from Friday 19 March, and waitlist now for Sydney.

agermanlife.com.au

 

CANBERRA

Venue: Playhouse, Canberra Theatre Centre

Season: 11-16 May

Performance Times: Tues - Sat 7:30pm, Sat mat 2pm, Sun 1pm and 6pm

Duration: 90 mins (no interval)

Prices:  From $69 (Transaction fees apply)

Bookings: canberratheatrecentre.com.au or (02) 6275 2700

BRISBANE

Venue: Playhouse, QPAC

Season:  2 – 20 June

Performance Times: Tues 6:30pm (8 June only), Wed - Sat 7:30pm, Wed mat 1pm,  Sat mat 2pm, Sun 1pm & 6pm

Duration: 90 mins (no interval)

Prices: From $79 (Transaction fees apply)

Bookings: qpac.com.au or phone 136 246

MELBOURNE

Venue: Playhouse, Arts Centre Melbourne

Season: 21 July – 15 August

Performance Times: Wed - Sat 7:30pm, Wed mat 1pm,  Sat mat 2pm, Sun 1pm and 6pm

Duration: 90 mins (no interval)

Prices: From $79 (Transaction fees apply)

Bookings:  artscentremelbourne.com.au or 1300 182 183

SYDNEY

Season details to be announced shortly

Waitlist now at agermanlife.com.au

FLEXIBLE TICKETING

In the event that ticketholders can no longer attend the performance of A German Life on their chosen date, processes have been implemented to provide a stress free exchange experience. Tickets can be easily exchanged up to 48 hours before the scheduled performance date, simply by contacting the Ticketing team at the theatre. For Terms and conditions, see the website agermanlife.com.au
COVID SAFETY

To see the COVID Safety measures in place, visit the relevant website below:

Playhouse, Canberra Theatre Centre - canberratheatrecentre.com.au  

Playhouse, QPAC - qpac.com.au

Playhouse, Arts Centre Melbourne - artscentremelbourne.com.au

GENERAL INFORMATION

Lock-Out: Strict lock-out rules apply. The first entry point after lock-out is 12 minutes into production and the second 20 minutes into production.

Age: Suitable for children 10+ years of age

Note: Contains graphic historical footage which may be distressing for some patrons

Photographer: James Green

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