Five characters at the outer limits of mental fatigue, citizens of the modern capitalist world and members of the achievement society, are at the point where they can no longer go on. Their honest acknowledgement of weakness and resignation reveals the importance of the seemingly pointless, of play, of things that are not profit-driven. How does fatigue affect each of the characters? How can they listen to their desires, which get lost in the hustle and bustle of everyday life?

Director Marilena Katranidou’s research was sparked by the ideas of the philosopher Byung-Chul Han about the ‘fatigue society’.  At a time when ‘can’ has replaced ‘should’ as the main axis around which human behaviour is organised, contemporary Westerners are all too familiar with the concept of burn-out. The constant insistence on productivity, overwork, the pursuit of perfection and ultimately self-exploitation have led to a veneer of happiness. The play explores the distance between automation and spontaneity and between powerlessness and play. It is an original creation for the stage, dedicated to actions that lead nowhere. But can they perhaps offer a way out of the suffocation of modern life?