Reconciliation

Spontaneous outing today to a matinee of Michael Frayn's Democracy, courtesy of my visiting father. I've previously declined at least two other invitations to see this play, partly because of the subject matter (afterwards described by one of its stars, Roger Allam, an old family friend, as "ten middle-aged men in suits discussing German parliamentary politics circa 1970"), and partly because I hated Frayn's previous, widely acclaimed opus Copenhagen, which I found both emotionally and scientifically wrong-headed, a frustrating and tedious experience all round.

Either Democracy is a better play, or it benefitted greatly from my almost-complete ignorance of the history it explored; I suspect both. Anyway, I liked it a lot. The play is essentially about the relationship between Chancellor Willy Brandt and his aide Günter Guillaume, who was eventually discovered (in life -- the play declares it from the beginning) to have been a long-term East German spy. On this foundation is built an examination of post-war German reconstruction, collective and individual guilt, equivocation and realpolitik that is funny, informative and at times very moving.

All things considered, it's not likely that a recommendation here will sway anyone, but I'll recommend it anyway. If you happen to find yourself in a position to, go see.
Posted by matt at June 2, 2004 11:57 PM