Disgrace

When General Titus Andronics returns victoriously to the capital, the inner destruction of the Roman Empire begins. What was once held together by wisdom, form and law, dissolves in brutality. Rome is reigned by fear, despotism, changing moods – the city succumbs to anarchy. Botho Strauß has, in a sense, "painted over" Shakespeare's play. Projection, variants, additions and diversions add up to what the author terms a "parasitic tragedy", an interpretation that harbours its own scenic consequence.