Das grosse Herz des Wolodja Friedmann

Gerhard Meister’s new play is set in the Zurich of the 1930s and 1940s, a place of exile. The piece revolves around the Friedmanns, a married couple who own the historically documented Comi boarding house. They give shelter to various characters, ranging from the Jewish musician to the failed revolutionary – all persecuted by the National Socialists. When the flood of refugees shows no sign of abating, they face a significant challenge: who else can they accommodate – without getting into difficulties themselves?

The young director Sonja Streifinger explores Switzerland’s political treatment of refugees during this period in its history. The individual stories of people from a variety of backgrounds coexisting in the smallest of spaces shed new light on the historical context and raise questions about how they lived together in a country that was not their own.