Cyrano de Bergerac

In the organizer's words:

How does Edmond Rostand's well-known romantic verse drama about the man with the big nose sound in the age of rap and poetry slam? In his dazzling, rousing new version, Martin Crimp has replaced traditional Alexandrians with spoken word and hip hop rhymes and refreshed the cloak and dagger play set in the early Baroque period with current debates.

The hot-tempered, eloquent soldier Cyrano hides insecurity and sensitivity behind his notorious outbursts of rage and macho demeanor, which one would not expect given his physical and verbal repartee. He is both feared and revered for his unerring, provocative rhymes. But he is not happy: he is tormented by his love for Roxane. The otherwise fearless man is unable to reveal himself to the woman he adores - because he is ashamed of his nose, which he sees as a flaw and monstrous and therefore considers himself unbearably ugly. In addition, Roxane's heart belongs to Christian, a smart, handsome soldier from Cyrano's regiment who, in his own estimation, lacks the right words and esprit to satisfy the beautiful and emancipated Roxane. When she also asks Christian for romantic poetry, Cyrano turns his despair into a ruse: he writes her clever and sensual letters in Christian's name and with his consent, which soon catapults all three of them into identity chaos and makes it increasingly difficult to distinguish between reality and appearance.

However, the battle in Crimp's new version of the popular classic is not just about love. Nothing less than peace, freedom (including that of art) and equality are at stake when Cyrano's adversary De Guiche enters the stage.

After THE VISIT OF THE OLD LADY, this evening in the style of a battle with lots of music is Nicolai Sykosch's next production at the Staatsschauspiel Dresden.