The dinner

What would you do if you were on the verge of becoming the country’s prime minister and suddenly learnt of a crime committed by your teenage son and his cousin? A crime for which there appear to be no witnesses and which is already beginning to fade from the nation’s short-term memory?

Two sets of parents meet for dinner at a posh restaurant and proceed cautiously through the aperitif, starter and numerous other courses. For every single member of this family quartet knows more than first thought and assesses the situation differently. Must they report their children so that the teenagers can be held to account? Or would it be better to cover the whole thing up so as not to ruin their sons’ futures? And don’t the adults have something to lose too? The fact is: in the end, a person is dead. And the parents must talk.

THE DINNER is a star-studded moral thriller, featuring Ulrich Matthes and Maren Eggert, amongst others, and a thought-provoking play full of clever twists and surprising turns. It deals with violence and how it survives with such force beneath the thin veneer of civilisation; how the human drive for aggression is passed down through families and hushed up by society; and how it is repressed, trivialised and medicated to ensure that everything continues to run smoothly.

○ “The production poses questions about morality, happiness, truth and violence in middle-class society in a gripping manner.” Inforadio RBB

○ “Matthes brilliantly portrays the multifaceted nature of this character, who initially presents himself as an ideal figure with whom to identify, skilfully navigating the fine line between lofty aspirations and the abyss of reality.” Der Tagesspiegel

The Dinner | Deutsches Theater