theater Basel will premiere Stefan Pucher‘s staging of Max Frisch‘s cautionary drama, Biedermann and the Arsonists, on October 16, 2025. The production arrives amid renewed global scrutiny of complicity and the normalization of extremism, offering a timely examination of societal denial in the face of impending disaster.
Frisch’s play, written in 1958, explores the story of a complacent bourgeois who unwittingly aids those intent on his destruction-a parable resonating powerfully with contemporary anxieties. Pucher’s interpretation, featuring a cast lead by Jan Bluthardt and Bärbel schwarz, seeks to re-ignite the play’s relevance for audiences grappling with the rise of populism and the dangers of apathy. The production runs 1 hour and 45 minutes without intermission.
The creative team includes Nina Peller (stage design), Annabelle Witt (costumes), Christopher Uhe (composition/sound design), Ute Schall and Hannes Francke (video design), Vassilios Chassapakis (lighting design), and Kris Merken (dramaturgy).Performing alongside Bluthardt and Schwarz are barbara Colceriu, Daniel Lommatzsch, and Marie Löcker, with vocal contributions from choir members Sebastian Baumgarten, Esther Gaspart Michels, Phaea Korycik, and Alina Trippl. Live video elements will be integrated into the performance by Ute Schall and Charlotte Engel.
further details are available at www.theater-basel.ch.
