Joseph Lorenz plays the holy drinker on stage in Reichenau

The source: Roth's posthumously published novella

The Parisian atmosphere is established at the beginning with accordion music. In the further course of the piece, the chanson "Les feuilles mortes" by Jacques Prévert and Joseph Kosma is also heard. The music for the production is by Oliver Urbanski, who at the same time embodies the allegorical figure of Addiction.

The set, designed by Johanna Lackner, contains bistro tables at which drinking takes place. Alongside Joseph Lorenz, Julienne Pfeil, who plays Love, the Saint, and all the other female figures, as well as David Oberkogler as the figure of the Miracle, appear on stage. Oliver Urbanski appears in the role of Addiction and simultaneously provides the music.

Set, music, and cast

Liedtke directs and has written the adaptation herself. She uses several narrative voices to unfold the story on stage. Roth's novella is often read as the author's literary testament; he died in Paris shortly before the posthumous publication from the effects of his alcoholism.

A recurring motif is the drinker's precarious existence. Roth wrote that Andreas „lebte von Zufällen, wie viele Trinker". The letters from Zweig to Roth contain appeals to undergo a course of withdrawal treatment. These historical testimonies flow into the production and lend it a biographical depth.

A literary testament on stage

The final words of the novella are: „Gott gebe uns allen, uns Trinkern, einen so leichten und schönen Tod." The constellation of characters made up of Miracle and Addiction frames the story of Andreas Kartak, who oscillates between dignity and downfall.

The performance in Reichenau was given standing ovations by the audience. Lorenz is explicitly praised for his portrayal of the "gentleman drinker." With her dense interweaving of the novel as source, letter quotations, and musical framework, Liedtke succeeds in creating an adaptation that both honors Roth's text and reopens it for the stage.