Curse, Fortune and Many a Trick

Bernhard Weller and Götz Valter (Spitz & Stumpf) bring the rise of the Habsburgs to the stage as a comedy spectacular - now revived in a slightly shortened version. The play was originally created for the state exhibition "Die Habsburger im Mittelalter. Aufstieg einer Dynastie".

250 years of German history that turn out to be a mix of crime thriller, soap opera and comedy. Because the Habsburgs weren't the only ones who wanted to be king back then - the Wittelsbachs, Nassaus, Luxembourgs and Bohemians all had a hand in it too. The result: two kings at the same time, kings who never showed up, dead kings who cheerfully kept on ruling, kings with three crowns and some with none at all. And the popes? At peak chaos there were three simultaneously - including saints who were utterly useless, and even some in suspenders.

Weller and Valter pull off more than 20 rapid-fire role changes - with imagination and comic flair, but always grounded in the historical sources. Their beloved alter egos Friedel Spitz and Eugen "Eicheen" Stumpf have since been sent into retirement.