Royal & Derngate Northampton and York Theatre Royal, in association with Oxford Playhouse, have today announced the world premiere of a new stage adaptation of Hans Fallada’s acclaimed novel, Alone in Berlin, adapted for the stage by Alistair Beaton.
Directed by Royal & Derngate’s Artistic Director James Dacre, the production will run at Royal & Derngate from 8 to 29 February 2020, before transferring to York Theatre Royal from 3 to 21 March 2020, and Oxford Playhouse from 24 to 28 March 2020.
Set in 1940, the play is a gripping portrait of life in wartime Berlin and a vividly theatrical study of how paranoia can warp a society gripped by the fear of the night-time knock on the door. Based on true events, Alone in Berlin follows a quietly courageous couple who stand up to the brutal reality of the Nazi regime. With the smallest of acts, they defy Hitler’s rule – facing the gravest of consequences.
This timely story of the moral power of personal resistance follows Otto and Anna as they negotiate the insidious effects of absolute power on every aspect of daily life. When they decide to make a stand in their own unique way, the Gestapo launch a terrifying hunt for the perpetrators. Otto and Anna find themselves players in a deadly game of cat and mouse with the forces of the state – a game that will eventually lead them down through ever-narrowing circles of totalitarian hell.
