Berlin Theater Premieres Novel Adaptation
A stage adaptation of Miranda July's novel "All Fours" had its world premiere at Berlin's Sophiensaele theater on February 15th. The performance is part of the city's experimental theatre scene.
- Miranda July's 2024 novel, "All Fours," was a finalist for the National Book Award for Fiction. The book explores a 45-year-old woman's sexual awakening and quest for a new kind of freedom. - The German stage rights for the novel were granted by July to the production's all-female creative team, which includes directors Sabine Auf der Heyde and Holle Münster, along with the two actresses. - The play stars two of Germany's most distinguished actresses, Meike Droste and Fritzi Haberlandt. Droste is a recipient of the FAUST Theater Prize for Best Actress, while Haberlandt has won two German Film Awards and a FAUST Award. - The venue, Sophiensaele, was co-founded in 1996 by choreographer Sasha Waltz and is a prominent center for Germany's independent performing arts scene. The historic building was constructed in 1904-05 and served as a meeting place for leftist revolutionaries like Rosa Luxemburg and Karl Liebknecht in the 1910s and 20s. - The four-woman creative team adapted the more than 400-page novel into a two-hour stage performance. - Following its sold-out premiere run in Berlin, the production is scheduled for performances at the Theater im Pumpenhaus in Münster and the Théatres de la Ville de Luxembourg. - The project is a co-production involving Sophiensaele, the Théatres de la Ville de Luxembourg, and Theater im Pumpenhaus Münster, with funding from Germany's Capital Cultural Fund. - A separate screen adaptation of "All Fours" is also in development as a television series by Starz.
