Doppelganger

He was one of the most critical writers and thinkers of the 19th century, and he paid a high price for it. Heinrich Heine, who was born in 1797 in Duesseldorf, took on capitalist exploitation, anti-Semitism, and hierarchic structures until his writings were barred in Prussia. Heine emigrated to Paris, but he always felt homesick for Germany. After his death in 1856, an artist in Duesseldorf built a monument, but the authorities prevented it from being displayed. With the financial support of Austrian Empress Sissy, the so-called Loreley Fountain was eventually shipped to America. Today, the monument can be seen in a park in the Bronx, and New York is also the place where a music theater piece on Heinrich Heine's life and work had its world premiere on November 3rd. The new piece, called "Doppelganger," was named after a poem by Heine, and it was conceived by Berlin-based theater director Gabriele Jacobi. The performance of "Doppelganger" took place in an old New York synagogue, and Georg Hirsch was there.

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