Kikeriki Theater - "Nosferatu" an Irony of Horror

KIKERIKI THEATER was founded by Roland Hotz in 1979 as an amateur puppet theatre in Darmstadt. The first public performance for children took place in 1980, and in 1984 the first full-length adult programme premiered. In 1992, part of the group made puppet theatre their profession, and after thirteen years of touring, a small theatre of their own opened in Darmstadt in 1993.

The aim of KIKERIKI THEATER is to present the ancient folk art of puppet theatre and preserve it as a permanent part of the rich cultural offerings of our society. Equally important to us is bringing joy to people and giving them laughter. We stand for cheerfulness, levity, and nonsense, but never for meaninglessness. The performance of KIKERIKI THEATER springs from the desire to listen to the voice of the people and, without mincing words, to repeat what is heard. We gladly present the small problems of everyday life, the pitfalls of the ordinary day, and all human weaknesses - sometimes seriously, sometimes lightly.

A characteristic feature of KIKERIKI THEATER's style is also a tenderly ironic approach to the specific manner of speech and way of life of southern Hessians. KIKERIKI THEATER is theatre for the people, but not in a folksy style with the stale smell of the past; rather, with honest, fresh barn air - true folk theatre in the deepest sense.

The performers of the KIKERIKI ensemble do not see themselves as actors, not as cabaret artists, and perhaps not even as puppeteers. Rather, they see themselves as comedians, jesters, and fools who, in their performances, freed from any educational mission, confront the everyday with irony. Puppet theatre is a form of theatre of absolute unreality, because the puppet is not a disguised actor; it does not pretend, "it is what it is": authentic and