Eurodram up close

Working with the Eurodram committee during the past few months provided interesting insight into foreign drama translated into German and the topics relevant in other countries this/last year.

Apart from this year’s selection of the German language committee, I would like to personally recommend a text from the submitted text pool that did not meet the taste of all committee members:

Sex ist eine geisteskranke Zeit- und Energieverschwendung (Faire l’amour est une maladie mentale qui gaspille du temps et de l’énergie, Sex is a Mental Illness that is a Waste of Time and Energy) by Francois Melquiot, translated from French into German by Almuth Voß.

Other than the title may suggest at first sight, this play is not a social comedy but an unconventionally structured story with surprising twists about a topic that is unfortunately highly relevant today: the invidious relationship of the (here: French) police toward non-white citizens.

The German translation is represented by Rowohlt Theater Verlag, a more precise description (in German) can be found here.