A Clockwork Orange

Translated by Ulrich Blumenbach

There is no way this bunch of simple-minded hooligans would follows the whims of their leader Alex. And yet here they are like wild animals running through the streets, bashing in everything and everyone in their path. Sexually harassing women and carrying out brutal robberies are as much a part of their daily routine as attacking homeless people. Everything follows one basic principle – having fun! That is, until the day their gang leader Alex is arrested by the police. Sentenced to several years in jail, Alex is chosen to participate in a novel experiment which will supposedly »free« him of his violent tendencies forever.

Written in 1962 as a vision of the future – a vision that could very come true today – the author Anthony Burgess’s novel »A Clockwork Orange« delves into the possibility of triumphing over evil by means of biotechnological interventions. Burgess’s novel is not driven, however, by idealism. Rather, it is an intellectual game with a form of violence, an absolute, »baseless« violence detached of morality and thus justice, evokes the question of the root of evil in humans. Can we become better people through biological or technological conditioning, the call for “political correctness” or simply apps that offer instant gratification?

Burgess points to the fact that re-inventing humans to do good is a utopia that will never fade, yet the heart of violence shall continue beating unabated. General theatre director Hasko Weber will present the stage adaptation of this bestseller, whose film adaptation by Stanley Kubrik became a cult phenomenon.