Thalias Kompagnons is the name of a German

puppet theatre Puppetry is a form of theatre or performance that involves the manipulation of puppets – inanimate objects, often resembling some type of human or animal figure, that are animated or manipulated by a human called a puppeteer. Such a performan ...

Nuremberg Nuremberg (, ; ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the Franconia#Towns and cities, largest city in Franconia, the List of cities in Bavaria by population, second-largest city in the States of Germany, German state of Bav ...

, managed by the

puppeteer A puppeteer is a person who manipulates an inanimate object called a puppet to create the illusion that the puppet is alive. The puppet is often shaped like a human, animal, or legendary creature. The puppeteer may be visible to or hidden from the ...

s and directors Joachim Torbahn and Tristan Vogt. Their repertoire consists of shows for both adults and children.

History

The puppet theatre was founded in 1990 as a professional freelance touring company by the name of "Tristans Kompagnons". In 2006 the puppeteers changed the name of the theatre to Thalias Kompagnons. From 1997 to 2008 they ran the Nuremberg "Theater der Puppen im KaLi" in partnership with the "Theater Salz & Pfeffer". They give guest performances all around the world, and their work has been awarded several prizes, e.g. the Preis der Stadt Nürnberg for art and science in 2008.

Ensemble

Joachim Torbahn studied art in

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

and worked as set-designer for several opera houses and theatres. He has been designing the stage sets and

puppet A puppet is an object, often resembling a human, animal or Legendary creature, mythical figure, that is animated or manipulated by a person called a puppeteer. Puppetry is an ancient form of theatre which dates back to the 5th century BC in anci ...

s for Thalias Kompagnons since 1990; since 1998 he has also been working as a puppeteer for the theatre. Tristan Vogt studied German literature and sociology; since 1990 he has been working full-time as puppeteer, author and director. Both members of the ensemble give guest lectures at the Ernst Busch School for Performing Arts (in the puppet-show department) in

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

Classification

The productions of Thalias Kompagnons represent mixtures of

puppetry Puppetry is a form of theatre or performance that involves the manipulation of puppets – wikt:inanimate, inanimate objects, often resembling some type of human or animal figure, that are animated or manipulated by a human called a puppeteer. S ...

drama Drama is the specific Mode (literature), mode of fiction Mimesis, represented in performance: a Play (theatre), play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on Radio drama, radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a g ...

and music theatre. They generally belong to the genre of puppet theatre, which makes use of the dramatic technique of

animation Animation is a filmmaking technique whereby still images are manipulated to create moving images. In traditional animation, images are drawn or painted by hand on transparent celluloid sheets to be photographed and exhibited on film. Animati ...

. With their painting-theatre productions – live painting to music – Thalias Kompagnons created a special synthesis of art and theatre: as the puppeteer tells a story which, like his painting, develops and changes, he simultaneously demonstrates the techniques of painting. Thalias Kompagnons were influenced by the Ernst Busch School. They treat the traditions of folk drama with affectionate irony and often play with the conventions of the classic German "

Kasperle Kasperle, Kasper, or Kasperl (different spellings in German variants and dialects; ) is a traditional puppet character from Austria, German-speaking Switzerland and Germany. Its roots date to 17th century, and it was at times so popular that ''K ...

-Theater" show. Apart from playing with

hand puppet A hand puppet is a type of puppet that is controlled by the hands that occupies the interior of the puppet.Sinclair, A, ''The Puppetry Handbook'', p.15 A glove puppet is a variation of hand puppets. Rod puppets require one of the puppeteer's han ...

s on a fourth-wall stage, the actor-puppeteers are actually seen on stage making use of other playing materials as well (e.g.

mask A mask is an object normally worn on the face, typically for protection, disguise, performance, or entertainment, and often employed for rituals and rites. Masks have been used since antiquity for both ceremonial and practical purposes, ...

s, table puppets, simple objects, video projections).

Selected productions

* ''Kafka's Castle. A power game'' (2009) – Kafka's novel fragment as malicious round of intrigues, struggles for power and double binds * ''Goblin, James and Ballerina'' (2008) – live painting to music based on the fairytale ''The Steadfast Tin Soldier'' by

Hans Christian Andersen Hans Christian Andersen ( , ; 2 April 1805 – 4 August 1875) was a Danish author. Although a prolific writer of plays, travelogue (literature), travelogues, novels, and poems, he is best remembered for his literary fairy tales. Andersen's fai ...

* ''Magic Flute – An Examination'' (2006) –

Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 1756 – 5 December 1791) was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition and proficiency from an early age ...

's opera played with puppets, sung by a

countertenor A countertenor (also contra tenor) is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range is equivalent to that of the female contralto or mezzo-soprano voice types, generally extending from around G3 to D5 or E5, although a sopranist (a ...

(Daniel Gloger) and accompanied by a live orchestra (ensembleKONTRASTE) * ''Macbeth for Beginners'' (2004) based on a play by Gigio Brunello and Gyula Molnàr – anarchistic version of

Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 23 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's natio ...

's classic drama, in which Kasperle ambitiously wants to be Macbeth * ''What does Red do on Thursday?'' (2004) – the painter narrates a story of creation and shows his reverence to

Paul Klee Paul Klee (; 18 December 1879 – 29 June 1940) was a Swiss-born German artist. His highly individual style was influenced by movements in art that included expressionism, cubism, and surrealism. Klee was a natural draftsman who experimented wi ...

, accompanied by music by Ravel and

Debussy Achille Claude Debussy (; 22 August 1862 – 25 March 1918) was a French composer. He is sometimes seen as the first Impressionism in music, Impressionist composer, although he vigorously rejected the term. He was among the most influe ...

* ''Hansel & Gretel'' (2002) by Fitzgerald Kusz – satirical version of Grimms' fairytale in East Franconian dialect * ''Dwarfs. A Franconian Passion'' (2000) by Fitzgerald Kusz – laconic miniature dramas, lyric monologues and the romantic kunstlied * ''Wagner's Ring. An Opera'' (1998) – the whole of

Richard Wagner Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, essayist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most o ...

's ''Ring'' in just two hours

References

{{reflist

External links

* http://www.thalias-kompagnons.de 1990 establishments in Germany Theatre in Germany