Ikarus vom Lautertal

Gustav Mesmer – A Flying Wheel Builder and His Life

Lindenhof Theater, Melchingen
Written and performed byFranz Xaver Ott 
Musician:Thomas Maos 
Directed and Video byFinn Bühr

He was a man of the last century—and yet he still speaks to us today. Gustav Mesmer, known as the Icarus of the Lautertal, was institutionalized in psychiatric facilities for 35 years. Yet a surprising freedom unfolds in his work: an inexhaustible cornucopia of flying machines, texts, musical instruments, speech machines, and images leaves a lasting impression. Well into old age, Mesmer possessed a never-ending creative drive, fueled by a tenacious energy. 

He was not a loud person. His life demanded patience and perseverance, and he had to endure setbacks, rejection, and hopelessness. But his joy in his own work, the strong need to communicate expressed in his texts, and the dream of flying that he never gave up gave his life stability and direction.

Mesmer’s work did not receive international recognition until late in life. One of his flying wheels was exhibited in the German Pavilion at the 1992 World’s Fair in Seville. When invited to the exhibition opening, he replied: “If I can be back home by evening.” “Home”—for him, that meant his birthplace, Altshausen, and the Buttenhausen country home in the Swabian Alb, where he spent the last thirty years of his life and created his significant body of work.

The Lindenhof Theater is now bringing this life story to the stage. Franz Xaver Ott, Thomas Maos, and Finn Bühr combine acting, music, video—and one of his flying wheels—into a compelling exploration of Gustav Mesmer. Mesmer even speaks for himself in the production, as 95 percent of the text comes from his own writings.