Sibylle Berg
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Sibylle Berg (born June 2, 1962 in Weimar, former East Germany) is a writer.
In the early 1980s she applied for permission to leave the East German state, a decision which eventually meant facing severe persecution by the authorities. In 1984 she started her career in Hamburg with contributions to various magazines, among them Die Zeit, with former chancellor Helmut Schmidt as co-editor.
After moving to Zürich in year 1996, she published stageplays that were translated into several languages. Among her other books such as Gold, Amerika, and others, is her latest success 'Ende gut...' which has not yet been translated into English.
[edit] External links
- Sibylle Berg: New German dramatic art. Goethe-Instituts Website
- (German) Official page
The merciless eye of Sibylle Berg, Germany’s most provocative writer
Her columns, essays and reports have earned Sibylle Berg the reputation of being the “glamorous, cynical opposite of all the poor hacks who are the dreary norm in today’s literature business” (Elmar Krekeler, Die Welt). Gold brings together in one volume all the gems from her career that her fans and disciples could wish for. These are her greatest hits, the best of Berg. Before Sibylle Berg caused such a stir in the goldfish bowl of the German literary scene, she was already well-known as a columnist and reporter for Allegra, Zeit Magazin and Stern. Her idiosyncratic and merciless eye for the often far from beautiful aspects of life results in articles that are a far cry from the monotonous banalities of contemporary journalism. Gold assembles for the first time all the finest examples of her work: brilliantly empathetic travel writing from Vienna, Bangladesh, Weimar or the Ruhr; equally empathetic portraits of Gerhard Schröder, Haruki Murakami and Phillip Boa; discussions of everything from the invention of the stocking to talkshow culture; or classics of reportage like her famous account of her meeting with the Polish mass murderer Leszak Pekalski. Also included is prose that should have been published by Der Spiegel or Suhrkamp Verlag but that was never allowed to appear in print. Less censorious herself, Sybille Berg reprints, too, some of the more polished passages from damming reviews that famous critics were kind enough to bestow on her books. Last not least this collection includes some of the most absurd letters to the author from her readers – and three of her poems, previously unpublished. All this in one volume, and at a bargain price. Unmissable! Born in Weimar, Sibylle Berg now lives in Zurich.. She has published three novels: Ein paar Leute suchen das Glück und lachen sich tot (Several People are Looking for Happiness and Laugh until They Drop Dead), Sex II and, from Hoffmann and Campe, Amerika (1999, also available as an audiobook). Her homepage (with guestbook): www.sibylleberg.ch.
Plays "Ein paar Leute suchen das Glück und lachen sich tot" (a dramatization of the novel of the same name) Premiere: Theater Rampe, Stuttgart, 1999 "Helges Leben" Premiere: Schauspielhaus Bochum, 2000 "Eine Stunde Glück" (now withdrawn) Premiere: Theater der Stadt Heidelberg, 2000 "Hund, Frau, Mann" Premiere: Theater Rampe, Stuttgart, 2001 "Herr Mautz" Premiere: Theater Oberhausen, 2002 "Schau, da geht die Sonne unter" ("Look, the Sun Is Setting") Premiered at the Bochum Schauspielhaus, 2003 "Das wird schon. Nie mehr lieben" (i.e."That'll Happen. Never Love Again") premiered at the Bochum Schauspielhaus, 2004
"Helges Leben" ("Helge's Life") Expeditions into the human realm, into the world of an extinct species. By the year 2004 animals have further developed all of humanity's good characteristics, eliminated the bad ones (of which there are many), and seized power. For their pleasure they can order "everyday human life" from Mrs God for Pay-TV viewing at home - for instance as theatre performances or illustrative material on the "human zoo". This evening Helge is being shown in a speeded-up version of his biography from the cradle to the grave. At his birth Mrs God and Death are already arguing about whether this is worth all the trouble since Helge's life is going to be so wretched anyway. His parents neglect him and kids at school tease Helge. From the beginning he is accompanied by fear whose warnings and doubts sabotage his existence. He meets Tina (inclusive of her fears), marries this woman, the two have a child, and then separate again. Finally Helge lies dying and alone in a hospital, asking himself whether that wa it now. A story where everything is different, commented on by head-shaking animals. How could these remarkable creatures survive for so long on this earth? Why did such fear so deprive these lives of vitality? After all, the terribly banal reason for Helge's failure to achieve happiness and fulfilment was lack of courage in taking decisions, was apathy and lack of feeling, rather than some fateful blow or other crucial event. (Rowohlt Theater Verlag)
Responses to the Play
From the cradle to the grave in 100 minutes, demonstrating that such a life can be petty, shabby, cheap, and yet very entertaining. (...) Afterwards what survived of respect for the human race into the 21st century - for incomprehensible reasons - can be seen, with a clear conscience, as being over and done with. This "splendid play by Ms Berg", directed by Niklaus Helbling, shows in passing how the good old charges levelled against civilization can be made fun of in the cruellest way if one is sufficiently light-hearted about that. It's not that "Helges Leben" opens up new areas of meaning, points to new perspectives, or that the Bochum Theatre thereby takes flight - but if a life is to be squandered, this is the way to go. (Franz Wille, in the Mülheim Theatre Days programme)
Premiere Schauspielhaus Bochum, October 2000 Director Niklaus Helbling Cast 6 f, 5 m, basic set Rights Rowohlt Theater Verlag Hamburgerstraße 17 21465 Reinbek bei Hamburg Tel. 040/ 72 72 270, Fax 040/ 72 72 276 theater@rowohlt.de Translations English, Finnish, French, Rumanian, Spanish
"Hund, Frau, Mann" (Dog, Woman, Man) (after Yael Hedaya's story Liebe pur, published by the Diogenes Verlag)
An unorthodox view of a relationship between two people: a dog describes the strange behaviour of the woman and the man who literally cling together even though they can scarcely stand one another. When they meet for the first time the dog runs up to them and from then on stays because - like them - it has nothing to lose, because - like them - it seeks shelter in a warm apartment. That would be enough for the dog as a way out of solitude, and master and mistress "could also have been pleased not to wake up alone any longer, but human beings don't hit on such simple ideas". After a brief period of devoting loving attention to one another human behaviour returns: love becomes a claim to possession, closeness is replaced by suspicion and alienation. Nevertheless both separation or any other variant of change are out of the question for the man and woman. The energy-draining routines of their everyday life as a couple, lived by others as something normal and thus dutifully followed by this man and woman, restrain them like a taut leash. That ultimately seems absolutely natural to the dog: "We dogs and human beings are in many respects related. For instance, we deal with catastrophes in the same way. We accept them".
Responses to the Play
The shabbiness of human existence,powerfully expressed in Sibylle Berg's prose, is also the theme of her new play "Hund, Frau, Mann" which has now been premiered. A brief text, more prose than drama, a coquettish lamentation of never-ending disappointment, transient pleasure, and eternal failure. In her novels Berg throws light on her characters' lack of inner life, and that is why drama, dependent on the spoken word, is a form which seems irreconcileable with her style. In "Dog, Woman, Man" Berg has developed a skilful trick for revelation of what is happening beneath the surface. A dog comments on the human beings: "They like humbling themselves, but that's nothing new" - he says, calmly watching the crazy antics of ridiculous love from his blanket. (Adrienne Braun, Stuttgarter Zeitung, 1.10.2001)
A piece by Sibylle Berg has been chosen for the third time running - each time with a special dramatic trick allowing mediation of her idiosyncratic view of the human zoo: a well-balanced mixture of chilled out, usually romanticized everyday feelings [...]. Now "Hund, Frau, Mann" brings something more which some previously thought painfully lacking: a kindly, gentle look at what is called a need for life or love. (Dietmar N. Schmidt, programme for the Mülheim Theatre Days, 2002)
Premiere Rampe Theater, Stuttgart, 29.09.2001 Director Stephan Bruckmeier Cast 1 woman, 1 man, 1 other actor (either m. or f.). Basic set Rights Rowohlt Theater Verlag Hamburgerstraße 17 21465 Reinbek bei Hamburg Tel. 040/ 72 72 270, Fax 040/ 72 72 276 theater@rowohlt.de Translations French, Polish, and Serbian translations are in preparation
