Surprise at the Berlin Theatre Prize ceremony: Christopher Rüping refuses prize money

It has been known since March that director Christopher Rüping would receive the Berlin Theater Prize. The Prussian Sea Trading Company Foundation awards the prize, which is endowed with 20,000 euros. Berlin's Governing Mayor Kai Wegner was scheduled to present the award on Sunday as part of the 62nd Theatertreffen at the Haus der Berliner Festspiele. However, Christopher Rüping declined the prize money, as Nachtkritik reports. Nachtkritik editor Esther Slevogt even made a video of Rüping's speech.

Here you can see how Rüping justifies his actions: "Accepting prize money from the Senate in this situation doesn't feel right," he says. "Or rather, it feels wrong." He then explained that he would donate the prize money to the organizations and institutions affected by the cuts, in proportion to their share of the total cuts. Rüping stated that there were 57 institutions whose bank details could be determined. "In total, this means 0.018 percent of the cuts approved by the Senate have been reversed." This was met with cheers and applause from the audience.

From the beginning, Christopher Rüping reacted ambivalently to the award

When it was announced in March that he would receive the award, Rüping had already reacted ambivalently: "My heart is racing a little and something is pressing on my temples. Apparently, I'm happy about this award, I feel honored. At the same time, it scares me—and not just because of the impressive gallery of previous award winners. What does such an award mean, especially now, in this situation, when theater is so endangered, not only in Berlin? Am I even allowed to be happy?"

In its statement, the jury praised the aesthetically innovative work of the director, born in 1985, and his collaborative, hierarchy-critical working method. Rüping has been invited to the Berliner Theatertreffen five times and was named “Director of the Year” by the trade magazine Theater heute in 2019 and 2021. His ten-hour production “Dionysos Stadt” received the prestigious Nestroy Prize for “Best Performance” in the German-speaking world. Since 2022, Christopher Rüping has also worked as an opera director, most recently directing the Monteverdi adaptation “Il ritorno / The Year of Magical Thinking” at the Bavarian State Opera. His current production of “Gier” based on Sarah Kane can be seen at the Deutsches Theater Berlin . It is rumored that Rüping will direct at the Volksbühne.