Manzini Studies at Theater Duisburg: A Clever Play About Love and Places
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A place is more than its price: René Pollesch's clever theater journey in Duisburg
On February 27, 2027, the Volksbühne at Rosa-Luxemburg-Platz, Berlin, will perform at the Theater Duisburg. In the Great House, René Pollesch's play I Don't Know What a Place Is, I Only Know Its Price (Manzini Studies) unfolds as an unconventional, eloquent, and simultaneously sensual stage experience.
Between Couch, Forestage, and Dream of a Summer Night
An actress enters the stage and confuses the forestage with a psychiatrist's couch. She wants to tell a story about a very bad Dream of a Summer Night – and thereby opens a realm of thought where love, theater, and inner turmoil intertwine. Shakespeare resonates, but Pollesch's dramaturgy does not lead to a closed narrative, but to a fluid network of dialogue fragments, reflections, and surprising twists.
Pollesch's Theater of Big Questions
René Pollesch's texts combine lightness with philosophical depth. The production revolves around first and last things, relationships, perception, and the question of how a place can even be defined. The title sets a precise counterpoint: where atmosphere, memory, and belonging usually count, suddenly, the price fills the room.
The direction of the theater maker who passed away in 2024 works with Pollesch's characteristic mix of demystification, wordplay, and intellectual overwhelm. Theater itself becomes the subject: the acting not only shows characters but also reveals the conditions of the performance. Thus, a production emerges that is simultaneously comedic, melancholic, sensual, and intellectually challenging.
Stage Art with Berlin Ensemble Profile
On stage are Kathrin Angerer, Marie Rosa Tietjen, and Martin Wuttke. The set design is by Barbara Steiner, and the costumes are by Sabin Fleck. Their design creates an open playing field where thoughts, bodies, and gazes constantly rearrange. Lighting, acoustics, and the immediate presence of the ensemble intensify the theatrical atmosphere into a concentrated evening.
The production was originally created at the Schauspielhaus Zürich and is now presented in Duisburg as a guest performance by the Volksbühne at Rosa-Luxemburg-Platz. Pollesch's theater work is thus part of a younger theater history that does not reject classical forms but dissects, questions, and reassembles them.
A Concentrated Stage Experience Without Intermission
The performance lasts about 1 hour and 40 minutes and is played without an intermission. From 7:30 PM to 9:10 PM, the audience remains in an uninterrupted stream of thought and performance. The audience reactions arise less from spectacular effects than from the interplay of precise acting, surprising linguistic wit, and moments of quiet discomfort.
Conclusion: Theater as a Place of Transformation
I Don't Know What a Place Is, I Only Know Its Price does not promise a comfortable reclining experience but an alert, intense theater event. Anyone wanting to experience René Pollesch's unique directorial style, strong performers, and a linguistically sparkling exploration of love, theater, and belonging will find an extraordinary evening at the Theater Duisburg.
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