Kids in the Spotlight

Stage fright before a world premiere at the Friedrichstadt-Palast in Berlin. Europe’s biggest youth ensemble is about to perform the show ‘Spiel mit der Zeit’ on the largest theatre stage in the world: a playful journey through time with lots of singing, dancing, acrobatics and stage machinery. The show is the result of a great deal of hard work for these performers aged between six and sixteen. Alice Agneskirchner captures it all with her camera: the auditions for the new annual intake of the youthful troupe; the selection of the lucky ones and the tears of the disappointed; the tough training sessions and focused rehearsals; and finally the premiere – with red carpet and all. In between, the camera homes in on several young performers, introducing us to their family lives and their dreams. Illness and death are not omitted either. As we meet these kids, some in their make-up, others without, we learn of the joy and suffering of lives lived between school, their families and the theatre. ‘Fear is okay’, says the show’s director. ‘It’s part of the process.’ At the end, the choir joins in: ‘Home is where you sing together’. The proud ensemble is rewarded with thunderous applause. (Berlinale)