A German theatre audience were “too stupid” to distinguish between fiction and reality after an actor was physically attacked for delivering far-right lines during a play, a critic has claimed.
In a review published by nachtkritik.de following the German premiere of Catarina and the Beauty of Killing Fascists on Saturday, critic Martin Krumbholz said the audience revealed a “mind-numbing self-righteousness” during the performance at Schauspielhaus Bochum.
Krumbholz – a critic of US Vice President JD Vance, Germany’s rightwing AfD Party, and other rightwing populists, describing their views as “nonsense” – was nonetheless scathing in his reaction to the audience’s conduct on the night.
“Parts of Bochum’s audience, which one would almost have considered one of the most theatre-savvy in the country, are apparently too stupid, it must be said bluntly, to distinguish between fiction and reality,” Krumbholz said, describing them as “a milieu that considers its own opinion beyond reproach”.
The incident occurred during the final 15 minutes of the play when actor Ole Lagerpusch, portraying a kidnapped far-right politician, delivered an extended far-right monologue in-character.
Audience members reportedly whistled, heckled, and threw an orange at the actor before two men stormed the stage and attempted to forcibly remove him.
Krumbholz described the scene as “unbearable,” noting that the attackers became violent and “would go at his throat” if not for the actor’s perseverance.
“Ole Lagerpusch delivered his lecture not in a Hitler-like or Höcke-like manner, foaming at the mouth,” he said, noting that the actor spoke gently and in a soft-spoken manner.
“In the end, this actually made everything worse. People believed they were cleverly exposing covert content and became angry.”
The critic further remarked on the “embarrassment” of the theatre having to explain to the crowd that the performance was a work of fictional storytelling and not a political rally.
“The Schauspielhaus (the theatre company) will probably precede the second performance with a trigger warning,” Krumbholz added.
“It seems indispensable.”
The play, written by Tiago Rodrigues and directed by Mateja Koležnik, depicts a Portuguese family with a 70-year tradition of kidnapping and executing fascists to avenge the 1954 murder of an agricultural worker.
The plot focuses on a younger family member who begins to question “whether violence can ever be a legitimate means of defending freedom and democracy.”
Following the confrontation, security measures have been increased for all future performances of the production in North Rhine-Westphalia.
The director of the play noted that while the actor managed to finish his final line, he was left “traumatised” by the evening’s events.
The production was originally invited to the 2023 Theatertreffen and is intended to explore themes of law, justice, and the rise of the New Right in a near-future setting.