Schweyk in the Second World War (2009)

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Poster by Mark Davies

by Bertolt Brecht, translated by William Rowlinson

Directed by James Hough (JH)

Performances: Tuesday 19th to Saturday 23rd May 2009, Prompt Corner


Introduction

This play derives from Jaroslav Hašek’s satirical and unfinished novel The Good Soldier Švejk, with Brecht transporting the tale from the First to the Second World War. The play is mostly set in Prague, the then the capital of the German Third Reich’s “Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia”’; it is 1942 and the German army’s doomed drive to capture Stalingrad is underway.

Most of the scenes occur within The Chalice, a pub in Prague (Schweyk’s “regular”). However, we also have scenes in the Gestapo HQ, Hitler’s HQ, the Prague railway yards, a military prison and the frozen steppes of Russia on the approaches to Stalingrad.

Cast

(in alphabetical order)

  • SS-Obersturmführer Bullinger / Wehrmachtdekan Bullinger / Officer at Hitler's HQ / Czech Prisoner / Singing Panzer Trooper - David Blatcher
  • Mr Schweyk – Alan Brown
  • Der Führer des Großdeutschen Reiches, Adolf Hitler - Alan Buckman
  • Reichsmarschall (and Reichs Minister of Aviation, Forestry etc etc) Hermann Göring / SS-Schütze Müller II / Customer at the Chalice / German Soldier, Prague Goods Yards (off stage voice) / Mr Vojte / Russian Peasant / Deserting German Soldier / Singing Panzer Trooper: Sean Chapman
  • Dr Paul Joseph Goebbels, Reichsminister für Volksaufklärung und Propaganda und Gauleiter von Berlin / Customer at the Chalice / Agent, German Department of "Woluntary Var Verk" / Czech Prisoner / Singing Panzer Trooper - Nick Conway
  • German Soldier - Derek Dempsey
  • Kati / "Lady" in Hitler's HQ / Mobile Squad to HQ Trooper No. 1 – Lena Feindt
  • Young Prochazka / SS-Schütze (Prague Goods Yards) / Czech Prisoner – James Furlong
  • German Soldier - Stuart Grimwood
  • Reichsführer SS Heinrich Himmler / SS Officer (Prague Goods Yards) / German Soldier / Deserting German Soldier / Singing Panzer Trooper - Stefan Lorett
  • Mrs Kopecka – Jenny McLaughlin
  • Mr Baloun – Peter Medd
  • Geheime Staatspolizei Agent Brettschneider / Generalfeldmarschall Von Bock ("Der Sterber"), Kommandant, Heeresgruppe Süd / Herr Doctor / Singing Panzer Trooper: Christopher Vian-Smith
  • Anna / "Lady" in Hitler's HQ / Mobile Squad to HQ Trooper No. 2 / Customer in the Chalice – Karen Webb (mistakenly referred to as "Anna Webb" in the programme owing to idiot director)
  • And Lux, Mr Vojte's dog - played by himself

And (last night only)

Crew

Krieg im Westen

When the audience were coming in, the idea was to have some German soldiers relaxing and watching a propaganda film. Accordingly, some white material was placed on the set for a film to be projected on to; and the film "Krieg im Westen" ("Victory in the West") was hired from the Imperial War Museum, payment being made for five viewings. Unfortunately, the projector blew a fuse on opening night, so all we got was the sound from then on. However, some commented that this was sufficient to get them "in the mood" for the play. Interestingly, the film featured, amongst others, the then General von Bock prior to his promotion to Field Marshal (after the fall of France); he bore little resemblance to Chris Vian-Smith.

Historical Mistakes!

Brecht made the following ones:

He gave the address of The Chalice as 7 Huss Street. Marek Lavstoka at the Prague Municipal Archives confirmed to JH that the address of the Chalice in WW2 was 12 - 14 Na Bojisti Street, where it is still running.

Brecht also had Hitler addressing Von Bock as "Herr General", whereas Von Bock was a Generalfeldmarschall at the time in question (1942).

It also appears Brecht failed to recognise that an SS lieutenant was kown as an "Obersturmführer".

We made the following ones:

The file jackets used at Gestapo HQ were not German. Rather, they were Home Office Prison Department files. They were identified as such by four members of the audience (one couple who worked at the UK Border Agency and another two from the National Offender Management Service).

The Gestapo HQ telephone was a genuine German WW2 'phone with the phonetic alphabet they used at the time on it (e.g. A = Anton; S = Siegfried; and Z = Zeppelin). However, it was a field telephone rather than an office one. Further, the telephone "ring" we employed wasn't anything of the sort: rather, it was the alarm siren used at the German naval gun battery in the film "The Guns of Navarone". Kevin Leech kindly provided this, as requested.

The tank track sound used for the entrance and exit of the German armoured vehicle was that (we think) of a Panzer Mark VI ("Tiger" tank) recorded by Kevin Leech at a Bovington "Tankfest". The Panzer Mark VI bore no resemblance whatsoever to our vehicle, however.

The submachineguns we had (MP [Maschinenpistole] 40's or "Schmeissers", as they were known to Allied troops in WW2) were plastic BB guns. Due to this, one of the SS soldiers was able to poke a customer at The Chalice with his MP40 while holding it only by the trigger handle. He would not have been able to do that with a real version, owing to the weight.

Tomas Jakl from the Prague Military Museum kindly confirmed to JH that the following SS units were stationed in Prague in 1942:

SS-Standortkommandantur Prag; SS-Standortverwaltung Prag; SS und Polizeigericht Prag; Sanitaetschule SS Prag; SS-Wachbattalion Prag; SS-Ersatz Battalion Deutschland; and SS-Totenkopf Ersatz Battalion II.

Having plumped for the latter, SS-Obersturmführer Bullinger was duly provided with the cuff title of the SS-Totenkopf Division (the Ersatz Battalion II being a depot formation for this - the third - SS division). Owing to an error by JH, we put the cuff title (featuring a silver skull on a black backbround) on his lower left sleeve, rather than on his left cuff (where it should have been). Not sure if anyone in the audience noticed this error, though.

Gestapo Report

Gestapo Agent Brettschneider, having arrested Schweyk in the Chalice, was required to present a report to SS-Obersturmführer Bullinger at Gestapo HQ. Accordingly, a prop report was provided with the following text thereon (translated by Stefan Lorett from text provided by JH):

Mitteilung

Von:

Agent Brettschneider K. Geheime Staatspolizei Stabsquartier Abteilung A Zimmer 401b Praha 1, Politických věznů 20

An:

SS-Obersturmführer Bullinger SS-Totenkopf Ersatz Batallion 11 Zimmer 203a Praha 1, Politických věznů 20

Datum: 23er August, 1942

Bericht über am 22en August 1942 in dem Lokal 'zum Kelch' vom Herrn Schweyk gemachten staatsfeindlichen Bemerkungen.

Die 'zum Kelch' Hussstr 7 gestern besucht, wurde Herr Schweyk von mir bemerkt, um einige staatsgefeindlichen Bemerkungen über unsere Regierung gemacht zu haben, einschließlich des folgenden:


1 Unser Führer hat vor, die Welt zu besiegen

2 Das Deutsche Volk ist nicht fest hinter dem Führer

3 Das Deutsche Volk beschwert sich über dem Führer

4 Deutschland verteidigt sich gegen ihre Jüdische Feinde nicht, ondern ist mit dem aggressiven Krieg beschäftigt

5 Der Münchener Versuch auf dem Leben des Führers war 'achtlos'.

6 Zum Protektorat würde es kein Schaden sein, wenn der Führer ermördert wäre

Herr Schweyk wurde infolge dieser Bemerkungen um elf Uhr sechs und vierzig fest genommen. Zwölf Uhr drei und zwanzig erreichte er das Geheime Staatspolizeis Stabsquartier. Dort wurde er formell angeklagt.

Ich kann bestätigen dass ich die Bar 'zum Kelch' bei mehreren Gelegenheiten besucht habe. Die Hauswirtin, Frau Kopecka, hat kein Interesse an der Politik und ist mit diesem Ereignis unverbunden.


Heil Hitler!


Unterzeichnet:


Agent Brettschneider K.

Reviews

Some review quotes go here


Gallery

John Sansom's photographs of the play can be seen here

Reminiscences and Anecdotes

Members are encouraged to write about their experiences of working on or seeing this production. Please leave your name. Anonymous entries may be deleted.

See Also

References

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External Links

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