The De-Nazification Of Herbert Von Karajan

Synopsis:

US Army Lt Colonel Ernst Lothar is interrogating the famous conductor, Herbert von Karajan, as part of the de-Nazification of Germany after WWII.

Though von Karajan joined the Nazi Party, he insists that he was not one of ‘them’.  If he cannot prove to the satisfaction of the Allies that he was not a Nazi sympathiser, he will not be permitted to conduct.

Von Karajan seeks redemption through the purity of music.  His interrogator recognises that the very single-mindedness that has elevated von Karajan to his present position also represents his greatest vulnerability to the ethos of Nazism.

Is it possible for anyone to emerge from a war with their innocence intact?  At what point does one cross that line?

Character Breakdown:

The play is a three-hander:  Two males and one female.

HERBERT VON KARAJAN – 38 / DON GIOVANNI – one actor.

LT COLONEL ERNST LOTHAR  56 / WALTER LEGGE  40 / JOSEPH GOEBBELS  45 / COMMANDETORE  – one actor.

ANITA GÜTERMANN 27 – 31 / ELMY HOLGERLOEF 20s / ANALYST / LEPORELLO  – one actor.

Setting:

Salzburg, 1946;  Milan 1942.

Running-time: 75 minutes.

Production History: Not yet produced.

Excerpt available for download for free.