2073: The New Colony

A Speculative Farce with a Script by Helene Thümmel

"Certain goals that were very relevant 50 years ago have been achieved. Whether this was done through purely democratic means is questionable."  People have grown accustomed to the autocratic and pseudo-democratic governments and one-party systems currently in power in Europe. But that doesn’t mean they accept everything as it is. The population is trying to cope with the status quo. The safe havens of this era are called niches.
Farmers have become more important again—specifically, small farmers, community gardens, and sharing. Many resources have become scarce. Not much of this has happened voluntarily.
People have somehow grown accustomed to intermittent power shortages, the decoupling of globalized trade routes, and reduced availability.”

In 2023, Helene Thümmel wrote a text for a panel discussion as part of the steirischer herbst festival about the future of theater at the Theater im Bahnhof. It is set in the year 2073, when Thümmel’s daughter Zofka will take over her role at the TiB and she herself will retire.
The text explores questions about the future in terms of dystopia and utopia.

Helene Thümmel is now continuing to develop this source text for this theatrical evening in collaboration with the ensemble.
The performance will take place in the Trachtensaal at the Volkskundemuseum, a space whose current staging evokes both the past and the future. 

Director
Ed. Hauswirth

Written and performed by
Jacob Banigan, Gabriela Hiti, Eva Hofer, Elisabeth Holzmeister, Monika Klengel, Jimmy Lend.

Set Design
Johanna Hierzegger, Helene Thümmel

Music
Benno Hiti

Technical Direction
Markus Rudolf-Klengel

Production Management
Christina Romirer, Johanna Hierzegger

A Theater-im-Bahnhof production in cooperation with the Volkskundemuseum am Paulustor

(We have our texts translated by DeepL)