FANNY & MARITZEBILL – Ein Mensch verschwindet (UA)

A play about Cologne, the magic of the Hänneschen Theater, and the systematic disappearance of a person

Between 1928 and 1935,Fanny Meyerwas a member of the ensemble at Cologne’sHänneschen Theater. With her voice and body behind the curtain, she brought the character of “Maritzebill”—also known as “Bestemo”—to life. Very little else is documented about her life. Only this much is certain: in 1935, she was dismissed because of her Jewish heritage, and in 1943, she was murdered in Auschwitz.

The play uses the few fragments of her biography as a starting point. Three performers pit the technical precision and magic of puppetry against the bureaucracy of disenfranchisement and dehumanization. While inanimate objects come to life on stage, the city of Cologne outside the theater’s doors changes beyond recognition. An exploration of an almost forgotten life.