Bennewitz, Goethe, Faust: German and Intercultural Stagings by David G. John (review)

David John’s book focuses on a forgotten chapter in the theater history of the German Democratic Republic—Fritz Bennewitz’s stagings of Goethe’s Faust, a case with significant historical depths and intercultural dimensions. John uses unpublished archival materials in textual, audio, and visual form to describe seven stagings: four in the GDR and three others respectively in the United States (English), India (Hindi), and the Philippines (Tagalog). John interprets the three GDR stagings as Bennewitz’s theatrical commentary on the sociohistorical development of the GDR from the 1960s to the 1980s. Disappointed by the reality at home, Bennewitz gradually transitioned from a GDR-loyalist to an international pioneer of theater.

John’s book has four parts. In the first part, John delineates a biography of Bennewitz (1926–1995) enriched by three interviews with Bennewitz’s former collaborators and colleagues. John emphasizes Bennewitz’s productive career nationally and internationally: Bennewitz directed more than one hundred plays and operas in Weimar, codirected plays with visiting directors from India, and visited twenty-five countries from 1961 to 1994, mostly while the GDR regime was still in place. John’s view is that the mutual trust between Bennewitz and the SED and his loyalty to the regime allowed for the dramatist’s global experiences. Yet, at the same time, Bennewitz was aware of the delicacy of travel and was always cautious with politics. John shows that, though Bennewitz never explicitly articulated them, he had increasing doubts and felt embitterment toward the GDR regime. This dissatisfaction led to his activities abroad where he channeled his political views. An admirer of Brecht, Bennewitz, on the one hand, followed Marxist aesthetic principles but, on the other, did not overstate class struggle and thus enabled actors and especially actors with different cultural backgrounds to fully articulate themselves.

Part 2 of the book deals with four stagings of Faust in the GDR in 1965/67, 1975, 1981/82, and 1995. John sees the first staging as a milestone for the GDR stage because the production confirmed the success and the promising future of state socialism without overtly sacrificing artistic quality. In this staging, Bennewitz shortened the length, toned down the mystical and spiritual elements in Goethe’s original, and changed some scenes. Most conspicuously, Bennewitz revived Faust after his death and gave him the drama’s last few lines. Faust’s declaration of “Das Unzulängliche, Hier wird’s Ereignis / Das Unbeschreibliche, Hier ist’s getan” is clearly a eulogy to the GDR’s achievements and is meant to express a sincere hope for a promising socialist future. In Bennewitz’s second staging in 1975, the socialist panegyric disappeared and many more video and audio effects were introduced. The final scene does not feature Faust’s reincarnated proclamation. Instead Faust reopens his eyes while speaking the famous line, “Genieß ich jetzt den höchsten Augenblick,” but then he is greatly amazed at what he sees before closing his eyes again and falling back dead. John interprets this scene as an expression of Bennewitz’s irony and the disappointment he felt toward the GDR regime. Despite the frustrating reality of GDR everyday life, Bennewitz directed a third staging of Faust in 1981/82. John points out that the irony is even stronger in this staging as the final scene is not played out but only read by a choir. The faintest hope for the success of socialism had clearly vanished and an underlying pessimism subtly surfaced. The fourth staging in Germany after the reunification in 1995 was also Bennewitz’s last staging of Faust in his lifetime. Remarkably, he truncated the famous exclamation “Verweile doch, du bist so schön” and expressed an unprecedented pessimism about the future of Germany. This staging was not a success.

Part 3 of the book focuses on the three international stagings of Faust. After the 1975 staging in Weimar, John observes, Bennewitz turned his...