Only a Day
Martin Baltscheit
Ages 5 and up
Synopsis
Imagine you only had one single day… What would you do? The little mayfly has no idea what to expect when she begins her life full of vim and vigor – because she doesn’t know she will have only one day. The boar and the fox watch her hatch and at first they don’t even want to make her acquaintance, because once they know and like her, it will break their hearts that she will only be here for a day.
But the fly has already introduced herself and wonders why the fox and the boar are so sad. How can they tell her the truth? She is much too sweet and endearing with all her big life plans: she wants to have a career, get married, grow old, learn a few languages… They just can’t bring themselves to destroy her illusions. So the boar tells a white lie and claims that it’s the fox who only has 24 hours to live. The little fly is greatly moved and immediately makes a plan. “If you only have one day, you need all the happiness you can get in 24 hours”, she announces. It’s as simple as that: if your time is limited, you need to make the best of it. The fly has tons of ideas and together the three animals go on an adventure full of exciting, sad and funny moments.
Martin Baltscheit’s beautiful and moving story about friendship, life, death and the pursuit of happiness is very poetic, funny and also a little sad.
Martin Baltscheit (*1965) works as a playwright and author of children’s books and has won many awards. Nevertheless, “Only a Day” stands out from his other stories. The wonderfully profound play for children premiered in 2007. It has been very successful and is still performed at many theatres. An audio play version was published in 2014 and in 2016 Baltscheit adapted the story for a film and an illustrated book.
Swedish director Gunilla Hällström has won the hearts of young audiences in Salzburg with her productions of “Mamma Moo and the Crow”, “Leopolds Lieder”, “Pippi Longstocking” and “La grande fabrique de mots”. Together with set designer Sonja Böhm, who has worked at the Burgtheater, the Akademietheater and the Salzburg Festival, she has developed a mobile production that can also be performed in school auditoriums and gymnasiums.
Cast
Director
Gunilla Hällström
Stage and Costume Design
Sonja Böhm
Dramaturgy
Friederike Bernau
Fuchs
Walter Sachers
Wildschwein
Christoph Wieschke
Eintagsfliege Janina Raspe
Reviews
„Die Produktion des Landestheaters im Oval im Europark ist ganz einfach eine zauberhafte Angelegenheit. Sehr bewegend und zum Glück auf immer wieder sehr witzig. Theater mit einfachsten Mitteln und gerade deswegen voller Poesie.
Regie führt die schwedische Regisseurin Gunilla Hällström, die im Landestheater schon „Mama Muh und die Krähe“, „Leopolds Lider“, „Pippi Langstrumpf“ und „Die große Wörterfabrik“ inszeniert hat.
Sonja Böhm, die bereits in Burg- und Akademietheater sowie bei den Salzburger Festspielen arbeitete, hat eine mobile Teichlandschaft entwickelt, die so abstrakt und zugleich so anschaulich ist, dass man die Fliegen summen, die Wellen plätschern und das Schilf im Wind wehen hört.
Wie fürsorglich sich Fuchs, in Gestalt von Walter Sachers, und Wildschwein in Gestalt von Christoph Wieschke, um Janina Raspes fröhliche Eintagsfliege kümmern! Wie beherzt sie sich zum Narren machen bei der Lebensplan-Etappe „Heiraten“. Und wie erstaunt sie erkennen müssen, dass dieser eine Tag wohl der erste und einzige im Leben der Freundin auf der Erde ist.“