Faust - a devilish fairground play is a puppet show of a special kind. In the decisive question of the theatre director, which he asks in his preface in front of the Punch and Judy booth: "Are we possibly all only figures in the great game of life; sometimes heavenly quietly guided from above - sometimes hellishly wildly moved from below?", lies the entire intention of this play. Who is a figure and who is a human being, or is a human being also only a figure? Who moves whom? Or who is moved and who is moved?
Already in 1666, the "tragic history of the life and death of Doctor Faustus" was performed in the puppet theatre, based on the original by the Englishman Christopher Marlowe. In order to present the truly gruesome story to the audience in a more entertaining way, popular characters such as the Hanswurst or later the Kasper, were an integral comedic part.
Also Johann Wolfgang von Goethe first saw the old puppet show of Doktor Faustus as a child in a fairground booth in 1759. Although Goethe later elevated his Faust to the status of Germany's most important literary and theatrical subject, his Faust parody "Hans Wurst's Wedding" showed that he too knew how to handle this material comedically.
In the spirit of this historical background, the KIKERIKI THEATRE presents its comedic folk theatre Faust as "a devilish fairground play" in a faithful 19th century Punch and Judy booth.Century.
Text source and more information about this event: https://batschkapp.tickets.en/en/events/9551-Kikeriki_Theatre_on_Tour:_FAUST_-_A_Devilish_Fair_Play
