Laios I Ruhrfestspiele 2025

Laios
Anthropolis II by Roland Schimmelpfennig
Director: Karin Beier
Deutsches SchauSpielHaus Hamburg

This solo evening with Lina Beckmann is a sensation. A tremendous theatrical delight. At the center is the story of Laios, the father of Oedipus. A time full of violent excesses begins in Thebes. Laios is brought back from exile and enthroned. The citizens' expectations are high. But he does not come alone, the young Chrysippus from Pisa accompanies him. Is he the reason why the new king and queen Laius and Iocaste are childless or is it the oracle of the seer Pythia? The next creature appears at the gates of the city: the Sphinx, an animal creature consisting of a lion, a woman and a bird, which drives the city singing and mysteriously into murderous madness.

In Roland Schimmelpfennig's poetic and multi-perspective monologue, which allows the various characters and myth variants about Oedipus' father to have their say, the production explores the question of what could have motivated the couple Laius and Iocaste to father an offspring despite the religious prohibition. How much responsibility do the parents bear for the fate of their child Oedipus, whom they wanted to make disappear in the mountains immediately after birth? How much guilt is passed on from generation to generation and how much freedom does the individual have to free themselves from it?

The play is narrated, embodied, acted and interpreted by the brilliant Lina Beckmann, who takes on all the roles in this breathtaking solo.

The acclaimed production was invited to the Berlin Theatertreffen 2024 and in the annual survey of critics by Theater heute magazine, the Deutsches SchauSpielHaus was named Theater of the Year, Lina Beckmann Actress of the Year, "Laios" Production of the Year and Play of the Year.

Talk with the actress Lina Beckmann: May 19, after the performance
Age indication: 14+