The passing of the last survivors, the return of war to Europe and the rise of political demons we thought we had overcome: the position in history that European societies have claimed for themselves over the past decades seems to be crumbling. What remains is a sense of uncertainty that can be felt everywhere and to which we are also seeking answers through aesthetic practices.

Documentary theatre only appears to fill this gap because it promises to preserve what is currently at stake: the authentic expression of memory, which we hope will immunise us against the return of the devastating 20th century. At the same time, it is precisely this positivism that runs the risk of reproducing the fantasy of overcoming our own history of violence.

In his lecture, Max Czollek asks whether a post-documentary theatre is needed as a response to the disappointment of the fantasy of overcoming the history of violence. One that also finds a language for those things that did not happen. Is it not precisely here that theatre exploits the full potential of its methods: as a (nightmare) dream machine of a world whose fever curve must be traced again and again. As a place of fiction that depicts a possible future, but also the gaps in the past. A theatre that goes beyond the many beliefs of progressive approaches of recent decades.

Duration ca. 40 Min.

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It's The Real Thing | Basler Dokumentartage 26
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