Music theatre by Ruedi Häusermann
with texts by Robert Walser
DIRECTED BY & COMPOSITION: Ruedi Häusermann
PFAUEN
WORLD PREMIERE: 06.02.2026
1 hour 50 minutes (no interval)
Time and again, composer and director Ruedi Häusermann finds astute parTime and again, composer and director Ruedi Häusermann identifies astute parallels between Robert Walser’s world views and his own preoccupations as a person and an artist; as is also the case in his latest theatre production for the Schauspielhaus Zürich. Robert Walser was a master at allowing the seemingly insignificant to grow. He adored hesitant little clouds, dreamy uncertainty and thoughtless thoughts because they were just thoughts, and concluded: ‘Even the most serious people sometimes long for the spontaneity of play.’
This is one of the reasons why Häusermann himself will be performing on stage with his jazz trio and a string quartet alongside three actors. Here, the sound of a washing machine; there, the murmur of a meticulously executed composition. Experiencing one within the other becomes a delightful interplay. Everyday trifles in a city façade made of paper become intertwined with thoughts about human existence.
"Where distance disappears, closeness draws tenderly near." – Robert Walser
Supported by Else v. Sick Stiftung
SOUND SAMPLES
For musical excerpts from the production, visit SoundCloud.
"Welcome to a quirky world of sound: composer and theater-maker Ruedi Häusermann shows us how to celebrate life. [...] An evening of theater like a warm embrace. Exactly what is needed in these crazy times."
"The evening is half concert, half play, and often both at once. Ruedi Häusermann consistently focuses on the seemingly small, while always leaving the audience enough space to associate it with the profound."
"Everything is (intentionally) slightly off-track, yet wonderfully harmonious. [...] Working in tandem with Walser, Häusermann searches for the playful within the profound and the profound within the playful."
"A piece of musical theater in which Häusermann celebrates his long-standing love for Robert Walser. [...] It is less about meaning than about sensuality, which, in Häusermann’s work, culminates in the sound of the music and the cadence of the language."