Romeo und Julia

BY WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE, USING THE TRANSLATION AND EXCERPTS FROM “LOVE BRINGS DEATH” BY THOMAS BRASCH, WITH ADDITIONAL TEXT BY MITHU SANYAL

PLAY

The plague is raging in Verona. A bitter civil war divides the city. Amid fear and hardening hearts, two young people—the children of feuding families—meet and fall in love. Thus begins what is arguably the most famous love story in world literature: as a rebellion against a world that has settled into hatred.

With this story of radical, daring love, Bernadette Sonnenbichler inaugurates her tenure as artistic director at the Theater & Orchester Heidelberg.

Shakespeare’s drama is complemented by texts by author Mithu Sanyal (“Identitti,” “Antichristie”), which bring the story into the present day. The production focuses on a society in a state of emergency—and on two young people who refuse to bow to it.