Why theater? Crisis and Reform

In reaction against the political division of the society and the return of conservative tendencies, the theatre has also been seized by a wave of politization: historical key events are being staged, authentic witnesses and experts of the everyday life are being put on stage and space for marginalized identities and groups is been made. But in turning into the theatre of everyday political topics, the theatre declares obsolete its own artistic transformation of the world. In this concise essay, Jakob Hayner gives his interpretation of this evolution as a deep intellectual and artistic crisis and asks for a recollection of what makes theatre different than other cultural phenomenon. Only when the political questions could be asked in the language of the art can the potential of drama be saved. Because it resides not the melting together with reality but in growing out of it. The renewal of theatre is at stake.