After a life of wine, women and song (and while playing a deck of cards), Xavier Bogenrieder, owner of the renowned beer-house "Unterbräu", has finally keeled over. His wake is less than harmonious: for one, one of his mistresses makes an unwanted appearance (and unwarranted financial demands), for the other, his long-suffering widow Wally (Ruth Kappels) is immediately swarmed by would-be future-husbands, among them the local teacher, pharmacist and postal worker. Much to the chagrin of the establishment's manager Sebastian (Karl Peter Holzmüller), who has been loyally keeping the place running but has for the longest time fallen in love with Wally. The local Shepherd Sixtus (Maxl Graf) comes to Sebastian's aid, suggesting that a potential "haunting" might drive Wally into Sebastian's arms, offering himself to play the part of the deceased's "ghost". But Sixtus haunting backfires. Soon the "Unterbräu"-pub has not only gained the reputation of a haunted house, but also loses its regulars and soon the naïve widow has the local bailiff sitting on her shoulder.
Indeed, "Der Geisterbräu" (German for "Ghost Pub") is a classic among South-German / Bavarian "Bauerntheater" ("rural plays"), often shown on TV in the past 50 years, more often played by local theatres. Like most of these stories, the storyline is rather simple and yes – call it a spoiler if you're not familiar with the genre – there will be a happy end for all involved. What differentiates this play from most other "Komödienstadl"-plays that would follow, is the setting itself. As always recorded in front of a live-audience, the seats of the onlookers are elevated, which allows the cameras to record at close range, giving the impression that this was a made-for-TV-movie.
The sets are quiet beautiful, designed with a lot of love for details, giving the feeling of the rural countryside at the turn of the last century (not that much would have changed since then anyway). Other than a majority of similar plays, that often will have a single stage, the story takes place in three different settings (the tavern itself; the loft, where Sixtus prepares his little "hauntings" and neighborhood butchery). All three places are as authentic as possible on live-stage, indeed, watching this and perhaps being familiar with south German beerhalls and taverns, you can almost smell the place. It is hence not surprising that "Der Geisterbräu" counts among the more popular theatre-plays of that time (or rather this version, considering that many other stage companies, both professional and laymen, still feature this play to this very day – the most popular being a version with cult-actor Toni Berger playing the grave-digger, which was aired in color a few years later). A little gem for fans of light, harmless urban theatre-plays, well worth a 7/10
Indeed, "Der Geisterbräu" (German for "Ghost Pub") is a classic among South-German / Bavarian "Bauerntheater" ("rural plays"), often shown on TV in the past 50 years, more often played by local theatres. Like most of these stories, the storyline is rather simple and yes – call it a spoiler if you're not familiar with the genre – there will be a happy end for all involved. What differentiates this play from most other "Komödienstadl"-plays that would follow, is the setting itself. As always recorded in front of a live-audience, the seats of the onlookers are elevated, which allows the cameras to record at close range, giving the impression that this was a made-for-TV-movie.
The sets are quiet beautiful, designed with a lot of love for details, giving the feeling of the rural countryside at the turn of the last century (not that much would have changed since then anyway). Other than a majority of similar plays, that often will have a single stage, the story takes place in three different settings (the tavern itself; the loft, where Sixtus prepares his little "hauntings" and neighborhood butchery). All three places are as authentic as possible on live-stage, indeed, watching this and perhaps being familiar with south German beerhalls and taverns, you can almost smell the place. It is hence not surprising that "Der Geisterbräu" counts among the more popular theatre-plays of that time (or rather this version, considering that many other stage companies, both professional and laymen, still feature this play to this very day – the most popular being a version with cult-actor Toni Berger playing the grave-digger, which was aired in color a few years later). A little gem for fans of light, harmless urban theatre-plays, well worth a 7/10