Helge's Life

In the foreseeable future, the earth is uninhabited. The remaining animals are in command. For their amusement, they desire from pro entertainers, Ms. God and Death, a small, simple human fate. Enter Helge, and his life.

Just born, Helge makes the acquaintance of Fear, who offers him a wide spectrum of skills. He’s never enough – not for his parents, not for the other kids, not even for himself. Where love seems unattainable, there’s the obvious: becoming evil. Half amused, half disgusted, the animals stand and watch Helge’s average central European life in awe. These creatures once ruled the world? Were superior to all other living beings? What gave them the right?

At 20 years old, Sibylle Berg’s HELGE’S LIFE has aged. And it belongs to the same generation as many of the members of the Import Export Kollektiv. Twenty years – in which climate change and the extinction of species have progressed, and the general doomsday mood has escalated. The young director Saliha Shagasi brings Sibylle Berg’s strange if vicious swansong about human domination to the Depot 1 stage, using it as a gateway for joint research on fear (of the future), courage, and the question of the good life.

In HELGE'S LIFE the themes of (sexualised) violence and suicide are addressed. Stroboscopic light effects are used. Certain flash frequencies can trigger epileptic seizures under certain circumstances. There will also be loud music; our service staff in the foyer will be happy to hand out earplugs.

Access to cultural offerings is a human right. Schauspiel Köln takes this mandate seriously, and so it is trying in small steps to open its spaces to people with different needs. The morning performance on 24 May is primarily intended to invite people with special movement needs, Tourette's, anxiety disorder, on the autism spectrum and anyone else who feels addressed to visit the Import Export Kollektiv's latest work. Among other things, there will be comfortable and wide seating, adapted lighting moods and a chill-out area in the foyer with live broadcasting.