TOP KICK

by Raoul Biltgen

Theater Reading

A young soccer player—Caro Bender, her club’s great “rising star”—has just missed the decisive penalty kick. After the game, a mysterious person approaches her in the locker room and bombards her with uncomfortable questions: “What were you thinking when you took the penalty kick?”, “Did you ask yourself, ‘What’s the point of all this?’”, “Are you actually a lesbian?”
In the conversation that ensues, Caro’s core beliefs are challenged, and she is forced to critically examine her self-image: Is her role as the big star perhaps not just about showing everyone how much better she is than the others?
In a staged reading, Teresa Townsend and Hannah Holthaus sensitively portray the inner struggle of this young soccer prospect.
What does it mean to live with the expectations and labels placed on female soccer players—expectations that aren’t placed on male players? What losses and disappointments come with seeing a dream come true?

Cast:Teresa Townsend&Hannah Holthaus
Staging:Friedrich Nürnberger
Dramaturgical Support: Antonia Ortmanns &Maximilian von Ulardt 

A collaboration with theGerman Sports & Olympic Museum