Der Apfelgarten

"The sun is shining, in my heart it is dark." Anton Chekhov

As the apples ripen in the fall, the heirs to a magnificent estate return to the Old Country. For five years they celebrated in the capital of pleasure, but now they are bankrupt. The previously bountiful apple harvest is no longer profitable. What should they do? An enterprising merchant from the neighborhood has plenty of ideas: Instead of throwing debauched parties and sinking into melancholy, apple sponsorships or cutting down the rows of trees could generate new yields. Departure or demolition? In any case, it is clear that things will never be the same in the future: The physical distance from the Altes Land was secretly a welcome distance, the proximity is now just a sentimental luxury.

"Chekhov said that it was not the task of a writer to write about the issues of the world, about politics or the meaning of life. His task is merely to report when, under what circumstances and who spoke about these topics. It is known from many examples that Chekhov becomes good when he is brought into the present. After all, he also wrote about his today." Antú Romero Nunes

Antú Romero Nunes (including "Moby Dick", "Threepenny Opera", "Odyssey", "Neverland") has been directing at the Thalia Theater since 2009 and was in-house director from 2014/15 to the 2018/19 season. Since the 2020/21 season, he has been part of the management team of the drama department at Theater Basel. Together with the author Dörte Hansen ("Altes Land", "Mittagsstunde", "Zur See"), he transposes Chekhov's world to a manor in the Altes Land, where "there seems to be a clearing of the throat in the air, as if someone is planning a farewell speech."

World premiere October 11, 2024, Thalia Theater