On May 10, at 7:00 PM, a joint Latvian and German production of The Robbers, using Jānis Peitāns’s historically important Latvian translation of Friedrich Schiller’s play, will be premiered in the Main Hall of Andrejsala’s Hull Shop building. The creative group includes director Janek Müller (Germany, picture right, at a rehearsal), stage designer Ieva Kauliņa (Latvia) and a local theatre group United Intimacy. The play will be performed in Andrejsala also on May 11, 12, 13 and 14 (7:00 PM). Later on, the production will be brought to other Latvian cities, and in the autumn the company is invited to Weimar, Bremen and Dortmund in Germany.

The text of Schiller’s The Robbers (Die Räuber) was translated by Jānis Peitāns, a 17-year-old coachman, in 1818, after he had seen it performed at the Rīga German Theatre. Shortly the play was staged in the Zundi threshing-barn of the Dikļi manor; therefore The Robbers became the first historically recorded theatrical production in the Latvian language.

“The brothers Franz and Karl Moor as well as other characters are portrayed by Schiller as individuals who are outsiders to the established social order and breach the existing values of society. This happens through love and sentimentality – as in the case of Count von Moor, Daniel and Amalia – or in the form of dissent. That also results in the aggressive vitality of Franz and Karl: Franz effectively puts an end to the remnants of his family, while Karl chooses to join a gang of robbers to compensate for the severed family ties. The characters of The Robbers experience deterioration of their most important social networks because of suppressed longings for freedom. The core question, however, is about the road to freedom and autonomy as it is taken by the modern man,” explains director Janek Müller in his comment about Schiller’s drama.

Only five actors will be performing, therefore each of them will play several parts. The production intends to emphasise the play’s text and focus on the story rather than expound its philosophical meaning. The director’s aim has been to explore blending of the archaic text of Peitāns’s translation with the aesthetics of modern theatre.

Directed by: Janek Müller

Ambience and visuals by: Ieva Kauliņa

Actors: Aigars Apinis, Armands Berģis, Mārtiņš Eihe, Andrejs Polozkovs, Ģirts Šolis

Produced by: United Intimacy, Theaterhaus Weimar

Financial backers: Latvian State Culture Capital Foundation, Weimar Council for Art, Goethe Institute in Rīga and Munich.

Janek Müller (director, Germany, b. 1973) is considered one of the most prolific younger-generation directors of the independent theatre scene. He began directing in 1999, and since then his productions have been shown at a number of festivals and theatres in Germany. Müller started out as assistant director working for various theatres; he’s a member of Weimar Cultural Council since 2005 and was responsible for the artistic direction of the international Robbers & Gendarmes festival. In 2003, Müller embarked on cooperation with Latvian artists in a joint project Euphoria! which was brought to the stages of Hebbel-am-Ufer in Berlin, Kampnagel in Hamburg, Jaunais Rīgas teātris (New Rīga Theatre), and elsewhere.

Ieva Kauliņa (stage and costume designer, Latvia, b. 1979) graduated with an MA from the Latvian Academy of Art. The young stage designer has already validated her talent while gaining experience by working for known directors at nearly every major theatre in Latvia: with Andrejs Žagars at the Latvian National Opera (The Demon), with Edmunds Freibergs (Ivanov, Parochial Bazaar) and Gaļina Poliščuka (Cruel Games) at the Latvian National Theatre, with Mihails Gruzdovs at Dailes Theatre (The Indrāns), with Māra Ķimele at the Valmiera Dramatic Theatre (Prodigal Son), with Andrejs Jarovojs at Jaunais Rīgas teātris (Plasticine), with Gaļina Poliščuka at the Rīga Russian Dramatic Theatre (Jasmine) and with Andrejs Jarovojs and the independent theatrical group United Intimacy (P. S. Sprīdītis, This is Rīga Speaking).