As in his acclaimed stage program Da Billi Jean is ned mei Bua, Stefan Leonhardsberger shakes up the established categories of entertainment in Rauhnacht. The Austrian actor and singer slips into a variety of roles for this mixture of cabaret and alpine western, drastically showing us why it's better to stay home on New Year's Eve.
Of course, his faithful and congenial partner Martin Schmid is once again in on the act, providing the live soundtrack on guitar as acoustic stage designer. As with the texts for Da Billi Jean is ned mei Bua, Paul Klambauer, who also directs, is responsible as co-author for the idea and book. Together with Leonhardsberger and Schmid he forms an unbeatable trio. With Rauhnacht, the makers have succeeded in creating a more than unusual mixture somewhere between Josef Hader and Quentin Tarantino, which doesn't fit into any pigeonhole and - perhaps precisely for that reason - is a source of enthusiasm among critics and audiences alike.
And this is what it's all about: Erich, the farmer from Höller, actually already has his hands full with various animal epidemics and a crazy grandmother. When his daughter Nora disappears on New Year's Eve, it's clear to him that things have to change in the new year. But he is not the only one who has set his sights high. Between raclette, champagne and New Year's concerts, nerves are also on edge in the respected gravel pit dynasty of Röbelreiter. Storm Vladimir brings Siberian snow masses, religious fanatics prepare for the end of the world and slowly everyone wonders: where the hell is Nora?