Hard on Hard—You Say Stop—A Satirical Play You Can Stick With
Play
Sie sagen Stopp
A satirical play to sit through
by the German-Swiss satirical duo “Hart auf Hart”
The fourth production in their uniquely idiosyncratic style, “They Say Stop”—a satirical play to sit through. One day, two people, one ordinary day, two scripts. The authors recount real and impossible encounters that take place within a single day. She’s jogging through the park; she’s German. He’s sitting in the waiting room; he’s Swiss. For both of them, it becomes a journey through the depths of human nature, punctuated at times by intellectual flights of fancy as they navigate linguistic and mental differences. There are phone calls and arguments, waiting and putting up with one another. A panopticon of humanity. The German/Swiss satirical duo “Hart auf Hart” astounds with linguistic and acting precision. Satirical play. Absolutely political. Nominated for the Leipzig Löwenzahn Award 2025 About Hart auf Hart: Acting & Satire Duo Hart auf Hart Elisabeth Hart & Rhaban Straumann Special Prize Tuttlinger Krähe 2025 & Thuringian Cabaret Award 2026 for “wollen Sie wippen?” A nuanced, subtle, and apt description of our work: “A true gem: A ‘reading theater’ piece by the German-Swiss duo ‘HartaufHart’ about the encounters between a German woman and a Swiss man at a children’s playground. Elisabeth Hart and Rhaban Straumann read and perform dialogues, complete with stage directions, while also entertaining the audience with nearly acrobatic antics on a “seesaw” or getting tangled up in a “climbing net” through pantomime. In addition to their careers as actors, the two also shine as writers: Not a single sentence seems superfluous, and every one hits the mark perfectly. They’ve finely tuned the rhythm of their program like a piece of music. They deliberately pick up and slow down the pace—including meaningful pauses—and, in terms of both content and language, they elegantly and subtly navigate the tension between German and Swiss prejudices—never clumsily, but always profoundly and with deeper meaning. This concept has no shortage of unique selling points in the colorful cabaret scene. And the audience is right along with them.” Kornelia Hörburger, on the occasion of Tuttlinger Krähe 2025