Herrenbestatter

The department store where Mr. Lenz and Mr. Ellenbeck in the Gentlemen's department anticipate, like every day, the great rush that never happens, is fighting for its survival. Price slashing and bargain hunting has brought this shopper's paradise to its knees. A new investor is waiting in the wings, but he will likely review and change the product line. And reduce the staff. Mr. Ellenbeck doesn't need to worry about this concept, as today is his last day anyway: he was forced into early retirement, after thirty years of working in the business. Even so, being an old-school salesman, stoically correct and manically obsessed with detail, he finds it hard to turn over the responsibilities to the young and smart Mr. Lenz. Mr. Lenz, on the other hand, worries about his job and tries to outsell Ellenbeck, in one final competition. This causes heated exchanges between staff and costumers about the new era heading towards them. Theresia Walser's play turns this microcosm which is the department store into an ironic-melancholic symbol for an irretrievably disappearing world.