Between
the geographical coordinates of Bergen (Norway), Neanderthal (the
Neander Valley near Mettmann in the Rhineland) and Karlsruhe, BAK-TRUPPEN
pose questions as to the concept of "identity" and the counter-concept
they have invented of "identideath". In the media theatre
of the ZKM the new Ice Age is declared. The cracking of the polar
caps awakens the Neanderthalers, ghosts who come back to confront
the living. They emerge from their caves and draw comparisons between
recent history, the present and the acceptable future. Across the
ages connections become evident between our prehistorical forebears
and our genetically optimised successors.The performance in Karlsruhe
is repeatedly interrupted by news from the Neander Valley passed on
by video and the Internet. Digital maps and communication links are
available for orientation purposes in a game which prefers confusion
about place and time to clarity. Possibly the audience will be presented
with a humanoid experience which equates identity with the exclusion
of time: standstill, timelessness.The "ambient theatre"
of BAK-TRUPPEN is always a guarantee of situation- and space-related
performances. Physical performance on the stage, the use of various
media and their possible defects follow anarchic spirit. The deeper
the desperation, the jollier BAK-TRUPPEN are.