Contents
Bertolt Brecht
Writing Mother Courage and developing epic theatre.
The Threepenny Opera · Mother Courage and Her Children
- Born
- 10 February 1898
- Birthplace
- Augsburg, Germany
- Died
- 14 August 1956
More people
Bertolt Brecht
Bertolt Brecht was a German playwright, poet and theatre director. His plays used songs, interruptions and visible theatrical devices to encourage audiences to examine the social forces behind a story.
Early life
Augsburg upbringing
Grew up in Bavaria and began writing while at school.
Medical studies
Studied medicine in Munich and served as a medical orderly during the First World War.
Career
- 1920s
Theatre beginnings
Worked as a playwright and dramaturg in Munich and Berlin.
- 1933–1947
Exile
Left Nazi Germany and wrote major plays while living abroad.
- 1949
Berliner Ensemble
Founded the company in East Berlin with Helene Weigel.
Selected work
The Threepenny Opera
A musical theatre collaboration with Kurt Weill.
Mother Courage and Her Children
A trader tries to survive by doing business during war.
The Caucasian Chalk Circle
A dispute over a child tests competing ideas of justice.
Beyond work
Political commitments
His Marxist outlook shaped his theatre and public controversies.
Collaborative work
Worked closely with writers, composers and performers, including Helene Weigel and Elisabeth Hauptmann.
Sources & photo credit
Life and career ↗Institutional or specialist reference ↗Photo: Kolbe, Jörg. CC BY-SA 3.0 de · Original image. Cropped and displayed in monochrome.
