Murder in the Lecture Theater
November 30, 2012
A staged reading of “Insufficiency” (“Killerblumen”) with Gerd Wameling on 5th December at the TU Berlin / A prelude to cooperation with the UdK
On 5th December 2012, Berlin University of the Arts (UdK) and the "Unifying Concepts in Catalysis” (UniCat) Cluster of Excellence will perform a dramatic reading of the play “Insufficiency” at the TU Berlin with the well-known actors and UdK lecturers Gerd Warmeling, Iris Böhm and Fabian Gerhardt. The play is written by Carl Djerassi, co-developer of the contraceptive pill. This performance will serve as a prelude to long-term cooperation between the UdK and the TU Berlin and is funded by the Einstein Foundation Berlin.
The protagonist of “Insufficiency", Jerzy Krzyz, alias Jean de la Croix, is an exceptional chemistry lecturer at a second-rate university in the USA. He is suspected of killing two colleagues using a new chemical invention. His struggle for recognition and tenure are reconstructed in a courtroom trial. His research on the science of bubbles is funded by the Champagne industry; his success and his manners are thorns in the sides of his colleagues and competitors. The reading is directed by Jessica Steinke.
Please mention the performance of “Insufficiency” in your publication. Journalists are cordially invited to attend:
Time: Wednesday 5th December 2012, 6 pm
Place: TU Berlin, Straße des 17. Juni 115, 10623 Berlin, Chemistry Building, Hörsaal C130, U-Bahn station: Ernst-Reuter-Platz / S-Bahn station: Tiergarten
Entry is free. Please register by 3rd December 2012 by e-mailing: martin.penno(at)tu-berlin.de
We can arrange an interview on request with the play’s author, Carl Djerassi, on the day of the performance.
Author Carl Djerassi and his protagonist represent an effort to transcend entrenched norms and patterns of behavior and the boundaries between disciplines, including science and art. In “Insufficiency”, the author highlights the dangers of ignoring ethical questions in the sciences and the need to consider scientific findings as part of a bigger picture that goes far beyond the discipline in question.
The TU Berlin and the UdK Berlin have agreed to establish long-term cooperation between the natural sciences and the performing arts with support from the Einstein Foundation Berlin. Under the umbrella title “Science on Stage”, the two organizations plan to explore scientific issues through artistic expression. The cooperation will be led by the Chair of the UniCat Cluster of Excellence Prof. Dr. Matthias Drieß and UdK lecturer Marion Hirte.
The author Carl Djerassi is emeritus professor of Chemistry at Stanford University. The chemist, born in 1923 in Vienna, was the first person to develop synthetic progesterone, laying the foundation stones for the invention of the contraceptive pill. In addition to numerous scientific publications, he has also published a number of novels and plays, for which he coined the descriptive term “Science-in-Fiction”.
Information on Insufficiency (Killerblumen): www3.unicat-berlin.de/killerblumen
For further information please contact: Dr. Martin Penno, TU Berlin, UniCat, Phone: +49 30 314-28592, E-mail martin.penno(at)tu-berlin.de