Motheranimal | Germany
Written by Leo Lorena Wyss
Translated by Neil Blackadder
Directed by Anna Bahow
Synopsis: Three siblings, one hospital room, and a lifetime of fish sticks and make-believe. For years, they have weathered their mother’s absence by reenacting Titanic—a cinematic echo of their own sinking home. But as they gather at her bedside once more, the games can no longer mask the truth. In this haunting exploration of role-reversal, the children who raised themselves must finally confront the profound legacy of a mother who struggled to stay afloat.
Funded by the Goethe New York
Courtesy of S. Fischer Verlag.
Playwright - Leo Lorena Wyss
Translator -Neil Blackadder
Director - Anna Bahow
Playwright - Leo Lorena Wyss (they/them), who grew up in Baden-Württemberg, works as an author and is also involved in political education. After studying cultural studies and aesthetic practice in Hildesheim and Madrid, Wyss is currently studying language arts at the University of Applied Arts. Wyss' work has received various awards and scholarships. Most recently, Leo Lorena Wyss received the Author's Prize at the 40th Heidelberg Play Market for the play Blaupause, as well as the Retzhofer Drama Prize 2023 and the Nestroy Prize in the category “Best Newcomer” for the play Muttertier. In the 2024/2025 season, Wyss was resident author at the National Theater Mannheim.
Translator - Neil Blackadder translates drama and prose from German and French. He has contributed many translations to IVP, including of plays by Lukas Bärfuss, Mishka Lavigne, and Ewald Palmetshofer that were later produced by theatres in Chicago, London, New York, and elsewhere. In 2019, Neil retired from 25 years as a professor of theatre at Duke University and Knox College. He has received grants from the NEA, PEN, and the Howard Foundation, and recently published his translation of the non-fiction book Sanderling by Anne Weber. In Spring 2023, Neil was Translator in Residence at Princeton University.
Director - Anna C Bahow is a Chicago-based theatre director, producer and new play dramaturg. She is committed to the development of new work and a diversity of voices. Drawing on her design and visual arts background, she often expands the theatrical experience through design, multimedia, live music, and movement. She is an Artistic Associate with Silk Road Cultural Center which foregrounds Asian, South Asian, and Middle Eastern artists and an a founding Associate Artist with The International Voices Project which brings plays from around the world in translation to Chicago. Bahow has received an After Dark Award for her directing, and her productions have received Chicago JEFF Awards for New Work and Use of Multimedia. She served as a Michael Maggio Fellow at the Goodman Theatre, is recipient of a 3ARTS WAVE Grant, and several Illinois and City of Chicago Individual Artist Grants. As an educator, she has taught workshops at several universities and created programming that has served international audiences promoting global understanding and volunteerism. More about her work can be found at AnnaBahow.com