Untersberg

There are many myths and stories surrounding the mountain that joins Austria and Germany on the edge of the Alps. Do people who climb the mountain really fall into time holes? Are the Habergeiß and Saurüssel spirits preparing for the Wild Hunt? And where are all these ravens coming from?

A boarding school student and a priest get lost during an excursion on said mountain – flip-flops were definitely not the right choice of footwear. What do the two characters have to say to each other, and what personal histories are they carrying around with them? Why did Salome not become a singer as in “The Sound of Music” and is working at a ski lift instead? Why was Frank excluded from the Christian party and is now serving as a priest rather than a political representative? Where did his love for his neighbours go?

When they reach the Kolowrat Cave, they are faced with a surprise. According to an old legend, a one-hundred-year rest in the mountain will be followed by the final battle – good against evil. Will Salome and Frank find a way? What has really happened, and what does it mean for all of us as individuals? How can we take a stand, and what can save US, all of us, from all the hatred? What does here/US really mean?

Anaïs Clerc has written a play for the Salzburg State Theatre about moral courage, about what it means to be human in difficult times and about the ecological changes that are also affecting the Untersberg and all those who need it, look up at it and want to climb it.

The works of award-winning young dramatist Anaïs Clerc are now being performed at many renowned theatres. The Swiss artist (“Attempts at teacher training and studying social pedagogics / everybody wanted to become something, while Anaïs felt it was enough hard work just to be.”) lives in Berlin and Zurich. She likes to develop plays and to work in collaborative processes. She was author-in-residence at the Bern Theatre and is currently working on her first novel.

Sarah Henker studied at the Institute of Applied Theatre Studies in Gießen and has directed several productions at the Salzburg State Theatre, including “We Should All Be Feminists”, “The Robbers”, “The Wolf Must Go!” and “How to Do Everything Right in Life”. Her work frequently focuses on current social debates. She has been collaborating with Salzburg-based stage designer Eva Musil for many years.