For more than 50 years, the Theater am Hechtplatz has stood for high-class entertainment. The cobblestones in the foyer are reminiscent of the former taxi stand, which the architect Ernst Gysel integrated into the theatre building in 1959 on behalf ...
Before attending, double-check the required language skills on the organizer's website.
Hard on hard
I was, you are
The new intimate play by Hart auf Hart about memory, truth and the question of what actually really happened. How did that go again? And above all: was it really like that?
Elisabeth Hart and Rhaban Straumann try to piece together their memories together. Of family stories and holidays, of their first meeting, of Germany and Switzerland, of major events and minor disasters. Unfortunately, their memories rarely match up. Memory is not a reliable repository of the past. It changes with every retelling, with the knowledge we have today, with our origins, upbringing and perspective. And sometimes simply because of the person sitting next to you who insists: ‘It was completely different.’
In *ich war, du bist*, Hart sets out on a quest to discover what remains of our past. What happens when personal memory becomes family history, family history becomes tradition, and history suddenly becomes political? Who decides what we remember? What is forgotten, repressed, reinterpreted or, at some point, told so often that it must have become true?
Amidst German and Swiss sensibilities, private memories and society’s culture of remembrance, a playful debate emerges about truth and reality, about photographs as evidence, history books as snapshots, and the reassuring certainty that, back then, everything was actually wonderful. It was wonderful. It was wonderful. It was lovely. Or was it?
‘I was, you are’ is a satirical play about memory in a present that will already be the past by tomorrow.
To this organizer's website
Wednesday, May 19, 2027
19:30
“For me personally, ‘Hart auf Hart’ is one of the most exciting and profound discoveries in the world of satire in recent years.” Roland Mahr, Artistic Director of the Renitenztheater Stuttgart, on the occasion of the 2026 Thuringian Cabaret Award ceremony
“As well as being actors, the pair also shine as writers: not a single line seems superfluous, and every one hits the nail on the head. They have crafted their programme with the subtle rhythm of a piece of music.” Kornelia Hörburger, on the occasion of the Tuttlinger Krähe 2025
“Outstanding scripts, breakneck pace, linguistic sophistication and magnificent acting.” Laudation at the St. Ingberter Pfanne 2026
The German/Swiss acting and satire duo ‘Hart auf Hart’ (Elisabeth Hart & Rhaban Straumann) enchant audiences with their linguistic and acting precision. The pair are thoroughly political and captivate with their uniquely idiosyncratic style. Their work is certainly not lacking in distinctive features within the colourful world of theatre; they create true gems. In 2025, they received the Tuttlinger Krähe Special Prize and, in 2026, the Thuringian Cabaret Prize for ‘wollen Sie wippen?’, ‘Sie sagen Stopp’ was selected in 2026 from over 300 entries by the residents’ jury for the Theater Natur Festival and awarded the St. Ingberter Pfanne.
Theater am Hechtplatz
Hechtplatz 7
8001 Zürich
+41 (0)44 415 15 15
Accessibility:
Infos Zugänglichkeit:
Mobility
Tickets
You can reserve wheelchair spaces directly in our ticketing system. Our box office team will then contact you for more detailed information about the size of your wheelchair and provide you with further information.
Seats
The wheelchair space, cloakroom and our theatre bar are barrier-free. The wheelchair space and the space for the accompanying person are located near the stage (rows 1-4), directly by the door and can be requested in the ticket shop or at the theatre box office. As soon as we have received your enquiry, our box office team will contact you to enquire about the dimensions of the wheelchair and determine the optimum seating solution based on this.
Toilets
There is a spacious, barrier-free WC at Limmatquai 4 directly behind the theatre (Zürcherhof 1st floor, next to the lift) and a Züri-WC at Bellevue (at the back between the VBZ ticket office and Deli-Snack on the Bellevue service island). Both are accessible with a Eurokey. If you need assistance from the theatre team when going to the barrier-free WC or would like to use one during the interval, please report to the cloakroom.
Sight
For people with a visual impairment, we recommend a seat in rows 1 to 3.
Blind dogs
Blind dogs may be taken into the theatre. Please either book seats in the ticket shop on the far left of the wall or on the far right of the door or contact the theatre box office. We are also happy to place guide dogs outside the theatre in a quiet place.
Ticketing
Our ticketing system is not yet barrier-free. To order tickets, please contact our theatre box office directly: Tel. +41 44 415 15 15 (free of charge) / Tue - Sat, 4 - 7 pm
Hearing
For people with a hearing impairment, we recommend a seat in rows 1 to 3.
Do you have any questions? Please contact Christina Teuber, co-director of the theatre at Hechtplatz:
Email: christina.teuber@zuerich.ch
Phone: +41 44 412 54 59 (available Tue, Wed, Thu, 10 am - 5 pm)
