Science meets Theater

The deep sea and the coexistence on our planet were the focus of the opening of the new season at the Theater Freiburg. On September 26, a sold-out audience saw “WASSERWELT. DAS MUSICAL” (Water World: The Musical), a piece by Felix Rothenhäusler, the new artistic director of Theater Freiburg.

For the piece, Rothenhäusler had sought contact with the MARUM – Center for Marine Environmental Sciences at the University of Bremen in the summer of 2023, when he was still a director at the Theater Bremen. He learned about life and conditions in the deep sea and discovered that although many regions of the deep ocean are still largely unknown, they fulfill important functions for the entire Earth system.

The result is “WASSERWELT. DAS MUSICAL”, which premiered in 2024 at Theater Bremen. The piece playfully depicts the impressive journey of a small crab who curiously leaves his home on the 4000-meter-deep ocean floor, travels through various stages towards the water's surface, and finally comes into contact with humans for the first time on a research vessel.

As part of the opening weekend, the Freiburg artistic director Felix Rothenhäusler and the MARUM climate researcher Michael Schulz spoke on a panel about the importance of the ocean in the Earth system, its impact on our lives, and how it is possible to develop a positive thinking despite the multiple planetary crises. The inspiring exchange showed how science and theater or art can open up new perspectives.

An accompanying exhibition with impressive underwater photographs from various depths of the ocean is open to the public in the theater foyer until March 2026. The images were taken during numerous expeditions by MARUM scientists.

“WASSERWELT. DAS MUSICAL” shows how science and theater can successfully come together. For MARUM, the collaboration is a valuable opportunity to gain a glimpse of the ocean from very different angles. Visitors are transported into the fascinating but still largely unexplored world of the deep sea and gain a new perspective on the importance of the ocean. Global challenges such as climate change, sea level rise, and biodiversity loss pose new tasks for marine research of great social importance. The deep ocean and the ocean floor also play an important role in this context. And the deep sea is not a desert, but rather an oasis of life—albeit a very sensitive one.