Schiller and the Dead Pants: Rousing premiere in Bad Hersfeld!

Schiller and the Dead Pants: Rousing premiere in Bad Hersfeld!

The premiere of Friedrich Schiller's masterpiece “The Robbers” took place on June 29, 2025 in the impressive Bad Hersfeld monastery ruins and attracted a diverse audience. The spectators included loyal fans of the punk rock band Die Toten Hosen as well as Schiller lovers. Director Gil Mehmert, known for his creative productions, linked the dramatic plot with the band's powerful songs, creating a unique atmosphere that was both thought-provoking and exciting.

The performance, which according to osthessen-news.de lasted three hours (including a 20-minute break), moved through dramatic scene changes and quiet moments that captivated the audience. The actors showed a remarkable acting performance and the live band, which played the songs of the Toten Hosen, was a lively part of the production through their presence, even if the band itself was not on stage.

A classic work reinterpreted

“The Robbers,” which originally premiered in 1782 and caused a scandal at the time, tells the story of two unlikely brothers: Karl and Franz. The latter rebels against their father and pursues his own power-hungry goals, while Karl flees to a gang of robbers. This theme shows parallels to the Sturm und Drang era, with which the band Die Toten Hosen is also associated festspielguide.de.

The production transforms the church interior of the monastery ruins into a lively setting for Schiller's heroes and anti-heroes. Mehmert uses the existing space to convey the feeling of freedom and rebellion of the band of robbers, which is portrayed here as a kind of autonomous community of outsiders.

An unforgettable evening

The audience's reaction was overwhelming. After the final act, the actors received a standing ovation and frenetic applause. The mixture of Schiller's dramatic narrative and the emotional punk rock sounds of the Toten Hosen aroused strong emotions in the audience and left space for reflection on power and freedom bad-hersfelder-festspiele.de.

Although Die Toten Hosen could not be present for the premiere, they left a handwritten greeting that underlined their connection to this special project. The successful combination of classical drama and contemporary music opens up new emotional spaces and makes the production of “The Robbers” a cultural event that will be remembered.

The upcoming performances at the Bad Hersfeld Festival promise to be at least as thrilling. Some tickets are already sold out and demand is high. So if you want to experience the mixture of Schiller's drama and the punk rock of the Toten Hosen, you should grab it quickly!