The Idiot (Der Idiot)

What does it mean to perceive the world differently from everyone around you? How do early experiences shape your life? What do you remember and what do you forget? How pre-determined are your actions and by what degrees of freedom are they characterised? How many facets does an individual have? Dostoevsky’s novel centres on Prince Myshkin, the ‘idiot’ who returns to Russia after spending several years in a Swiss sanatorium. He is now apparently cured and can talk and function socially. The play tells stories of abuse, featuring characters whose actions and speech initially appear erratic and showing moments of great naivety and direct proximity to death. For the director Sebastian Hartmann, the play is also a tender journey into Dostoevsky’s mind and his obsessions, desires and fears.