History

In his novel “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn”, Mark Twain sends the teenage tramp Huck Finn and the runaway slave Jim on an adventurous journey down the Mississippi. Both of them are on the run. Their destination is Cairo, that’s where the steamships sail to the free states, where slavery no longer exists. While Huck Finn is fleeing from his violent father and a bigoted society, Jim wants to escape slavery and buy his family’s freedom. The two boys have to hide during the day and drift towards their fate on the great river at night. On their journey, the two unequal friends encounter slave hunters, conmen, false pastors and white farmers who wage bloody feuds among themselves. Always in danger of being discovered, both realise that they are dependent on each other for better or worse. Huck Finn has to admit to himself that Jim is more than just a thing, the property of white men and women. This realisation plunges him into violent remorse; he can only break away from the morality of his time by being prepared to burn in hell.

aufBruch approaches the novel in Lore Krüger's translation through a selection of scenes from various stages of this journey. On the eve of the American Civil War, the two outlaws stand against a world in which the right of the strongest is the law. Poverty and alcoholism toughen people against the suffering of others. The winner is the one who makes his cut. The economic cause of the whites' openly displayed contempt for the black slaves is only one side of the coin of socially accepted violence. There’s a struggle for social status and economic dominance among whites too. But different rules apply here. The white characters in Mark Twain's novel know when empathy is appropriate to give the appearance of socially conscious behaviour. This is learned early on, but the characters tip over into the sociopathic and dissocial as soon as they start pursuing their own interests unobserved by the public. Showing real empathy and acting accordingly is only granted to a few and is extremely risky.

Performed by the aufBruch prisoner ensemble in the JSA Berlin: Ahmad, Amsat, Arbi, Dima, Hamdi, Jaden, Mikael, Leo, Leonardo, Rashid Che, Sefa.

Director Peter Atanassow Stage designer Holger Syrbe Costume Designer Melanie Kanior Music coach Vsevolod Silkin Choreography Ronni Maciel Video Pascal Rehnolt Productionmanager Sibylle Arndt Assistant director Flora Besenbäck Production intern Ida Meinel Graphic design Dirk Trageser

Tickets: 15 € / 10 € (discounted)

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Funded by a grant from the Senate Department for Justice, Diversity and Anti-Discrimination
Supported by the JSA Berlin, JVA Tegel, Volksbühne Berlin.