Friday, April 19, 2024
What does cauliflower resemble? Fossilized flowers? Dead algae? Brain tissue? Perhaps Bertolt Brecht had these and others in mind creating a "Cauliflower War" as the cataclysmic event of The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui, his deliberately unfunny lampooning of Adolph Hitler. Brecht's protest play is now at the Classic Stage Company with a mesmerizing Raúl Esparza in the title role in John Doyle's uneven production. Brecht's inspiration for his 1941 play was Charlie Chaplin's The Great Dictator. Released one year before Arturo UI's premiere, Chaplin's intentionally funny film sends-up both Hitler and Mussolini. (Chaplin not only resembled Hitler, they were born days apart.) Unlike The
Tag: Bertolt Brecht
Brecht on Brecht at The Atlantic Stage 2
Brecht on Brecht is a monumental work that serves as an urgent invitation to - “change the world, she needs it.” In this production eight performers take us on an adrenaline fueled musical ride through some of Bertolt Brecht’s most powerful observations on social and political fall out. This “theatrical collage” has been woven together by George Tabori and serves to provoke us into deep introspection about the state of our current political climate. It’s a gift for those on the front lines, who are dedicating their energy to securing our democracy, to hear such poignant wisdom coming from someone