Dismantling the G* Baron. An evening that shifts perspectives and exposes reality
Some theatre productions stay with you long after the applause has faded. ROMABARON – KEIN Z*******BARON was such an experience for me. The piece delivered on the title’s promise: it was indeed a dismantling, a relentless exposure – and at the same time an impressive artistic reinterpretation of the “G* Baron” material. With each scene, with each musical twist, with each image on stage, the old racialising narrative was taken apart and then reassembled. A process that got under my skin.
As soon as the music started, I felt my body and my mind plunge into the narrative. The sounds were so much more than mere reminiscences of waltzes – they broke through the limitations of white musical tradition and let other perspectives shine through. It was as if the music made the perspective heard that is most often drowned out.
The vocalists were outstanding, both in terms of singing and acting. The complexity of the characters unfolded with each role switch, each gesture, each accentuation – as did a clever, subtle critique of the absurdity of the common narrative patterns that were exposed as the well-known perspectives of the white gaze on Rom*nja and Sinti*zze. A critique that uncovered systemic problems.
One of my favourite moments, which were both illuminating and funny at the same time, was the scene in which Zuspán let his white tears flow theatrically, while he complained that “you can’t say anything anymore” these days. Above his head, the word “PORK” flashed brightly in red capital letters. A viciously comical blow to the dominant society’s myth of victimhood.
Another powerful scene was a recital of the discrimination and persecution of Rom*nja and Sinti*zze – from the Nazi era to the present – by one of the singers in a stressed, almost frantic manner. It was truly uncomfortable to watch, the rendering was reminiscent of a dissociative motor disorder – and that’s exactly what hit the spot: an attempt to talk about deep-rooted systemic racism, and how this attempt is all too often dismissed as “hysterical” by the dominant society. And yet: the stories are real, the wounds are open.
The song that got to the heart of mainstream society’s obstinate blindness is etched on my mind as well: the piercing “Gott sei Dank!” [Thank God!] celebrated the misconception that racism has long since been overcome. The line “Und the Roma? Lieben wir total, das war mal anders, ist jetzt doch egal” [And the Roma? We totally love them, that used to be different, but that doesn’t matter anymore] is still like a thorn in my ear. A musical slap in the face of any form of complacency.
For me, skipping the intermission after this oppressive section was a shrewd gesture. Nobody was allowed to escape the discomfort. After all, reality offers no way out for those affected, either. We had to hold out together as an audience.
The video recordings of Stefan Horvath were very moving: in plain, unadorned words he talked about his life and about the racist assassination in 1995 in which his son and three other young Roma were murdered. These moments tore open the theatrical world of the staging and connected it with the harsh reality.
And then the set even added a visual exclamation mark. Over the course of the evening, the supposedly typical corrugated iron huts and caravans were converted into a house. A video of audience reactions after a true-to-the-original Strauss production, which had already been shown on entering, was then projected onto it. The roof and eaves made the faces appear distorted, which in turn made the unthinking compliments for the racialising portrayal of the Rom*nja and Sinti*zze seem ridiculous. A visual language that gets to the heart of how perspectives shift when you look closely. Coming full circle, a piece that doesn’t simply discharge the audience but continues to run on in the mind for a long time.
An evening that challenged me not only in terms of content, but also emotionally – and confirmed my belief all the more that this is precisely the type of theatre that opens up spaces for perspectives that are otherwise overlooked in the discourse.
Glossary:
White gaze: the attitude of white mainstream society towards other ethnicities, often racist and distorted
Racialising narrative: narratives that promote racial stereotypes or discrimination
White tears: outrage of white people when confronted with racism, often without comprehending what the real issue is
Dissociative motor disorder: a physical symptom triggered by trauma or stress, closely associated with the historically sexist term “hysteria”
Désirée Sandanasamy studied law at the University of Innsbruck and specialised in international law as well as minority rights and human rights. She gained international experience in New York, Paris, New Delhi, Brussels, among other places. She has been working as a legal advisor at ZARA since 2021.