''Schweyk in the Second World War'' (''Schweyk im Zweiten Weltkrieg'') is a

play Play most commonly refers to: * Play (activity), an activity done for enjoyment * Play (theatre), a work of drama Play may refer also to: Computers and technology * Google Play, a digital content service * Play Framework, a Java framework * Pla ...

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

dramatist A playwright or dramatist is a person who writes plays. Etymology The word "play" is from Middle English pleye, from Old English plæġ, pleġa, plæġa ("play, exercise; sport, game; drama, applause"). The word "wright" is an archaic English ...

and poet

Bertolt Brecht Eugen Berthold Friedrich Brecht (10 February 1898 – 14 August 1956), known professionally as Bertolt Brecht, was a German theatre practitioner, playwright, and poet. Coming of age during the Weimar Republic, he had his first successes as a pl ...

. It was written by Brecht in 1943 while in exile in

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

, and is a sequel to the 1923 novel ''

The Good Soldier Švejk ''The Good Soldier Švejk'' () is an unfinished satirical dark comedy novel by Czech writer Jaroslav Hašek, published in 1921–1923, about a good-humored, simple-minded, middle-aged man who pretends to be enthusiastic to serve Austria-Hungar ...

'' by

Jaroslav Hašek Jaroslav Hašek (; 1883–1923) was a Czech writer, humorist, satirist, journalist, bohemian and anarchist. He is best known for his novel '' The Fate of the Good Soldier Švejk during the World War'', an unfinished collection of farcical inc ...

Background

''Schweyk in the Second World War'' is set in Nazi-occupied Prague and on the Russian Front during World War II. In a summary written for potential composer

Kurt Weill Kurt Julian Weill (March 2, 1900April 3, 1950) was a German-born American composer active from the 1920s in his native country, and in his later years in the United States. He was a leading composer for the stage who was best known for his fru ...

, it was written: "The Good Soldier Schweyk, after surviving the First World War, is still alive. Our story shows his successful efforts to survive the Second as well. The new rulers have even more grandiose and all-embracing plans than the old, which makes it even harder for today's Little Man to remain more or less alive."

Hanns Eisler Hanns Eisler (6 July 1898 – 6 September 1962) was an Austrian composer (his father was Austrian, and Eisler fought in a Hungarian regiment in World War I). He is best known for composing the national anthem of East Germany, for his long artisti ...

, ultimately, became Brecht's chief musical collaborator for the work.

Plot

As Schweyk is forced into war, he manages to survive while overcoming dangerous situations in

Gestapo The (), abbreviated Gestapo (; ), was the official secret police of Nazi Germany and in German-occupied Europe. The force was created by Hermann Göring in 1933 by combining the various political police agencies of Prussia into one organi ...

Headquarters, a military prison, and a Voluntary Labor Service. The ending finds Schweyk lost in a snowstorm near

Stalingrad Volgograd ( rus, Волгогра́д, a=ru-Volgograd.ogg, p=vəɫɡɐˈɡrat), geographical renaming, formerly Tsaritsyn (russian: Цари́цын, Tsarítsyn, label=none; ) (1589–1925), and Stalingrad (russian: Сталингра́д, Stal ...

. He meets an equally lost and bewildered

Hitler Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Germany from 1933 until his death in 1945. He rose to power as the leader of the Nazi Party, becoming the chancellor in 1933 and then ...

, whose path is blocked by snow, frozen corpses, the Soviet Army, and the

people. Finally, Hitler does a grotesque dance and disappears into the snow.

TV Production

Portuguese TV made an adaptation in 197
IMDB link

Stage production

''Schweyk in the Second World War'' was not staged during the lifetime of its writer Brecht, though it has been staged innumerable times across the world in various languages, including Bengali, since its 1957 premiere in Warsaw. The National Theatre in London staged a major revival directed by

Richard Eyre Sir Richard Charles Hastings Eyre (born 28 March 1943) is an English film, theatre, television and opera director. Biography Eyre was born in Barnstaple, Devon, England, the son of Richard Galfridus Hastings Giles Eyre and his wife, Minna Ma ...

with the same company of actors he had directed in his famous 1982 production of ''

Guys and Dolls ''Guys and Dolls'' is a musical with music and lyrics by Frank Loesser and book by Jo Swerling and Abe Burrows. It is based on "The Idyll of Miss Sarah Brown" (1933) and "Blood Pressure", which are two short stories by Damon Runyon, and also bo ...

''. Red Theater Chicago staged it in October 2012 starring Kevin Cox. It was directed by Aaron Sawyer with original music composed by Michael Evans. Forum Three Bangalore staged it for the first time in September 2014 in Bangalore and later at

Auroville Auroville (; City of Dawn) is an experimental township in Viluppuram district, mostly in the state of Tamil Nadu, India, with some parts in the Union Territory of Pondicherry in India. It was founded in 1968 by Mirra Alfassa (known as "the ...

for an international audience. Directed by

Ranjon Ghoshal Ranjon Ghoshal ( bn, রঞ্জন ঘোষাল; 7 June 1955 – 9 July 2020) was an Indian theatre director and musician. He was a member of the Bengali band Moheener Ghoraguli, and ran an advertising agency, Mareech Advertising in Ban ...

, the original music recreating the Eastern European melodies of the 1940s was composed by

Sudipto Das Sudipto Das (born 12 July 1973) is an Indian author, social worker and musician. He is also a columnist, a speaker at TED events and a veteran in the semiconductor industry, having co-chaired the Industry Forum at the VLSID 2020. He has been ...

, with

Sihi Kahi Chandru Chandrashekar (born 1962 23 July), known by his stage name Sihi Kahi Chandru, which literally means "sweet and bitter" Chandru, is an Indian Kannada film and television actor. Career His wife ''Sihi Kahi Geetha'' and he were the main protagoni ...

playing Schweyk.

References

Bibliography