“From a distance, it is easier to see the mistakes people make when populism, propaganda, poverty and repression sow fear. So let us take a closer look – as Brecht puts it – at how a nation becomes susceptible to manipulation, how totalitarianism is born, and how each individual, through their own choices, contributes to it. And it does not matter whether we are talking about the 1930s or the 21st century. A century’s distance would indeed make it laughable, if the consequences were not so tragic,” says director Indra Roga.
A “golden classic” of theatre history. A representative of epic theatre, German playwright Bertolt Brecht wrote Fear and Misery of the Third Reich (Furcht und Elend des Dritten Reiches) between 1935 and 1938, while in exile in Denmark. He wrote it in response to the events of his time, while working in radio and writing for newspapers.
“An impressive mosaic of life in Nazi Germany” (Michael Billington, The Guardian) remains a remarkably prescient mirror today – wherever people allow fear to enter their lives and lose their inner freedom.
*4th-year student of the Dramatic Theatre Acting programme at the Latvian Academy of Culture.
The production is created with the support of the Boris and Ināra Teterev Foundation as part of Valmiera Theatre’s 2026/2027 season.
To date, 13 new productions have reached audiences with the support of the Foundation. In the 2025/2026 season: The Evil Spirit (director Inese Mičule), Medea (director Reinis Suhanovs), You Will Be Mine! (director Jānis Znotiņš), and Skroderdienas Silmačos (director Elmārs Seņkovs). In the 2024/2025 season: Romeo and Juliet (director Inese Mičule), Blue (director Māra Ķimele), Sprīdītis (director Reinis Suhanovs), Four White Shirts (director Jānis Znotiņš), and The Magic Mountain (director Toms Treinis).
The friendship between the theatre and the Foundation began in the 2023/2024 season, the theatre’s centenary year, when four works of Latvian dramatic classics were staged: The Boys of Valmiera (director Jānis Znotiņš), The Widow’s Son (director Viesturs Roziņš), as well as Joseph and His Brothers (director Inese Mičule) and The Prodigal Son (director Reinis Suhanovs), both of which received particular acclaim from audiences and critics.
