Ferdinand von Schirach: Der stille Freund

About this event

Ferdinand von Schirach, a former criminal defence lawyer turned writer, has built a reputation for spare, morally charged storytelling. His collections of short stories, such as “Crime” and “Guilt”, and his plays “Terror” and “God”, grapple with justice, responsibility, and human failure, often drawing on his legal experience. His style is precise and unadorned, leaving readers to sit with uncomfortable questions rather than offering easy answers. For this evening, Schirach adapts his book “Der stille Freund” (The Silent Friend) into a stand-alone stage piece. The texts circle around friendship, hope, Greek Stoicism and mortality. Expect no conventional reading: the programme is shaped for the theatre, weaving narrative fragments into a quiet, concentrated performance. Schirach’s delivery is measured, his presence understated – the kind of evening where a single voice fills a large hall. It is a literary event for those drawn to thoughtful, slow-burning storytelling. The atmosphere in the Großer Saal is likely to be hushed and attentive, as Schirach works through visions of triumph and loss without melodrama or easy consolation.