Die Ballade vom traurigen Café - mit WORTLAUT (Giese/Furch), Albert Koch & Norbert Roschauer
DIE BALLADE VOM TRAURIGEN CAFE / The Ballad of the Sad Café
A heat-dried coffee with a cotton spinning mill, a church, and a prison colony. Surrounded by swamps in the middle of Georgia.
Here, Miss Amelia runs a thriving general store and provides the workers with homemade whiskey. Suddenly, a hunchback appears at her door, claiming to be her cousin. Miss Amelia takes him in, and everything changes. She opens a café, a place where one can “forget for a few hours that humans are not worth much in this world.” After a few bright years, however, Miss Amelia's ex-husband Marvin Macy returns from prison...
Carson McCullers, regarded by Tennessee Williams as “one of the most significant authors in the world,” writes with existential force about love, the fear of abandonment, and transience. “The unvarnished truth is that many cannot bear to be loved.” Once read, no one can escape the poetically melancholic magic of this tragic love triangle.
The duo WORTLAUT (Madeleine Giese and Rainer Furch) brings it to the stage in their own version as a live audio piece. “Everything comes out in the blues music, joy, pain, struggle”: Albert Koch and Norbert Roschauer tell the “Ballad of the Sad Café” on blues harp and guitar.
Texts are meant to be read, stage plays belong in the theater, and live music is commonly heard in concert halls. It becomes interesting when all three components are realized in an unusual environment by equally extraordinary artists. This self-created interpretive showcase in the sold-out carpentry shop of KAMMGARN has succeeded on a high qualitative level. The award-winning artist couple Madeleine Giese and Rainer Furch, together as the duo WORTLAUT, could not have had better protagonists for writing and performing this new version of “The Ballad of the Sad Café.” Both understand each other on stage almost blindly, leading to an incredibly secure and expressive performance on this premiere night, with elements fitting together like gears. They presented the piece in a lively dialogue that constantly demanded the imagination, while both consistently slipped into their played roles. Blues harp master Albert Koch and the seasoned guitarist Norbert Roschauer underscored, connected, and commented precisely on the offered texts, thus giving them even more contour and power. Standing ovations.
Premiere review by Rheinpfalz Kaiserslautern / Andreas Keller
Rainer Furch was born in Neuwied/Rhein and raised in Kirn/Nahe, studied German, English, and Philosophy in Mainz, worked for daily newspapers and ZDF, and acted in the free theater scene in Rhein-Main (including Mainzer Kammerspiele and Unterhaus). He then completed actor training in Munich. For over 30 years in a permanent engagement, he has been a member of the Pfalztheater ensemble since 2001. A selection of his roles: Faust, Willy Loman, Karl Moor, Macbeth, King Philip, George, Petruchio. He regularly works for TV and film, including the German Actor Award for “Ein Geschenk der Götter.” He participates in numerous radio productions, including in the series “ARD Radio Tatort” and “Nebel heißt Leben rückwärts.” Additionally, he has been performing for over 20 years with Madeleine Giese as the duo “Wortlaut” with various musical-literary programs. In 2021, the duo was awarded the Dietrich Oppenberg Media Prize.
Madeleine Giese was born in Lebach/Saar. She studied at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater Saarbrücken. From 1982 to 2001, she held various acting engagements in southern Germany, studying theater science. Since 1987, she has contributed texts for cabaret, radio, and theater. Since 2002, she has been a freelance author of five crime novels (Rowohlt and Aufbau Verlag), one novel (“Galgenheck” 2014), several crime dinners, and plays for children (including “Bremer Stadtmusikanten”) and adults (including “Wo fängt die Wand an?” and “Die apokalyptischen Reiter”). Since 2009, she has been a regular audio drama author for ARD Radio Tatort. Currently, the third season of the short audio play series “Nebel heißt Leben rückwärts” is available on ARD Sounds, and the new Radio-Tatort "Mit dem Rücken zur Wand" will be released in the fall.
Albert Koch, harmonica, vocals
Born in Kaiserslautern. He has been playing in many regional and national bands and music projects for over 50 years. His style has been influenced by Paul Jones (Bluesband), Norton Buffalo (Steve Miller Band), and "Magik Dick" Salwitz (J. Geils Band). In addition to numerous CD productions with his own formations and as a studio musician, as well as various radio and television appearances, Albert Koch has played and continues to play at international boogie and blues festivals with renowned musicians (Christoph Steinbach, Pete York, Mungo Jerry, Michael Hill, Louisiana Red, Martin Schmitt, Abi Wallenstein, Gottfried Böttger, Heinz Glass, and many others). Albert Koch feels at home in various genres, but his passion belongs to the blues. He currently plays in various formations, including 'Tin Pan Alley Bluesband,' 'Acoustic Blues Community,' several duos, and musically accompanies readings by Madeleine Giese and Rainer Furch or Andreas Prodehl.
Norbert Roschauer, guitar
Born in Viernheim, he studied music at PH Heidelberg, was a freelance guitar teacher and director of a guitar school, and has toured with numerous bands and ensembles of different styles on German and international stages, authoring several textbooks on acoustic guitar and writing for specialized magazines, and conducting workshops on acoustic guitar. He plays various six- and twelve-string instruments, including resonator guitars, acoustic blues, slide guitar, fingerpicking, and classical guitar.
Doors open: 19:00 Uhr
Hallo, ich bin Maya.
