Agenda & tickets

Lebensraum

An ingenious invention

Inspired by Buster Keaton’s silent movies Jakop Ahlbom Company shows a story about two men in a small room and a doll that could be their downfall…

Two men are living together in a single tiny room. They have ingenuously solved the problem of lack of space. All the furniture has multiple functions: the bed doubles as a piano and the bookcase serves as a fridge. And to compensate for the absence of a woman, the pair create a mechanical cleaning lady. But it soon becomes clear that she has no intention of quietly going about her chores. This doll has opinions of her own. Tensions mount, and the room starts getting smaller and smaller. The men’s latest invention may be their downfall.

Jakop Ahlbom brings the magic of silent movies to the stage, with the help of the band Alamo Race Track. Ahlbom’s play Lebensraum is inspired by the work of actor and filmmaker Buster Keaton, a pioneer of slapstick and physical comedy. Back in the 1920s, live classical piano music accompanied silent movies such as Keaton’s, but in Lebensraum it is Alamo Race Track who provide the musical accompaniment. The band and Jakop Ahlbom have created a contemporary backdrop recalling 20s’ conventions.