Berlin Ensemble
Matthias Brandt is playing theater again
Matthias Brandt shines in «My name is Gantenbein». Photo: Gerald Matzka/dpa
© dpa-infocom GmbH
All alone on the stage, surrounded by a luminous frame. The solo by Matthias Brandt at the Berliner Ensemble.
Many people know Matthias Brandt (60) from his “Polizeiruf” thrillers – or they have read his books “Blackbird” or “Raumpatrouille”. Now the actor can be seen in a theater production for the first time in years.
“My name is Gantenbein” premiered at the Berliner Ensemble on Friday evening. It is based on the novel by Max Frisch (1911-1991).
In the theater version, however, this turns into a monologue: Brandt is standing all alone on the stage, surrounded by a light frame. In the roughly two hours, he slips into various roles. In the character Gantenbein, for example, who pretends to be blind. Or other characters invented by the narrator.
Ultimately, it is about the big question of identity. What exactly are we? And how do we construct our I? “Everyone sooner or later invents a story that he considers his life,” says the novel. Brandt also says this sentence. The 60-year-old plays the characters with empathy between wit and desperation. Disguises himself and at some point yells: “When will the ashtrays be emptied?”
The evening alternates between several characters, wrote director Oliver Reese in advance, who also directs. He spoke of a range from apparent sovereignty at the beginning to the complete rupture of a personality. “You wouldn’t trust this terribly likeable actor to play it in all its harshness and ugliness.”
According to the theater, Brandt can now be seen in a production on stage for the first time in around 20 years. The actor – son of the former Chancellor Willy Brandt – received many “Bravo” calls at the end. An evening – like a fall “through all mirrors”. “A man has had an experience, now he’s looking for the story behind it,” says the novel. “One cannot live with an experience that remains without history.”