CAST: ANOUK PIWEK, CHRISTINE OCHSENHOFER

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DIRECTING: TAMARA SONJA AIJAMATHIESEN​​

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STAGEDESIGN / COSTUME: NATHALIE SCHATZ​

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MUSIC / VOICE-OVER: NICO-ALEXANDER WILHELM

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DRAMATURGY: TILL WIEBEL

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LIGHTING DESIGN: OLE DAHNKE

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PREMIERE: APR 2026​​

 

 

Beauty is pain. Even though this saying has been around for ages, it takes on a whole new meaning today. Trends and beauty ideals spread via social media not only create enormous pressure, but also drive massive consumption of skincare products. And following a brief commercial success of the ‘body positivity’ movement, being thin is once again the ideal – certainly since the advent of drugs like Ozempic. A global beauty industry is constantly developing new solutions for ever-changing problem areas. The main target audience: young women. Between Botox and detox, blush and butt lift, face contouring and serum layering, skincare and skinimalism, a new dimension is opening up in the ceaseless production of the ideal and the desire to live up to it.

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Even in fairy tales, beauty is proclaimed to be young women’s greatest asset. Their worth is defined by the prince’s gaze and his interest in them. With a bit of luck, they are brought back to life by his kiss and awakened from their beauty slumber. But who is it that really needs to wake up here? What new narratives about beauty do we need to shake up, when this story of oppression has already made its way from the fairy-tale book straight into our TikTok feeds?

Fiery, well thought-out and with a sense of humour.

In this work, Aijamathiesen explores role models and the dictates of the beauty industry in a playful, intelligent and humorous way. In doing so, she intertwines the world of fairy tales with that of young women today. In doing so, she relegates the beauty ideals propagated across all channels to the realm of the unreal, for one can always be thinner, one’s lips could be even fuller, and one’s face even tighter. The beauty industry knows how to exploit this just as well as social media; there is no upper limit, and all of this has more to do with fairy tales than with reality.

(Theaterzeit Hamburg)

Throughout this devised Play, the team skilfully balances its critique of a society that preys on women’s desires and the associated industry. The fresh and direct script also offers the two captivating actresses ample opportunity to perform comedic scenes peppered with elements of trash and horror.

(Hamburger Abendblatt)