With its stage adaptation of Tonio Schachinger's successful novel, the Schauspielhaus Salzburg offers a poignant glimpse into the life of a teenager caught between everyday school life, pressure to perform, and the role of a digital hero. The production sensitively shows how Till searches for his identity between boarding school structures and online gaming—telling a coming-of-age story that is as contemporary as it is universal.
At first glance, Till seems like an unassuming 15-year-old student at a traditional Viennese boarding school. But while he struggles with his schoolwork and feels out of place in his school's snobbish environment, he is a celebrity online. As the youngest top 10 player in the real-time strategy gameAge of Empires II, he finds stability and recognition in the digital world and is celebrated as a hero.
Tonio Schachinger's contemporary novel tells a coming-of-age story of young people in the 21st century in a humorous, exciting, precise, and touching way. It accompanies Till through the pressures of school, everyday life at boarding school, and the pitfalls and dark sides of online gaming—all the way to graduation.
The stage adaptation by Alek Niemiro and Julia Thym sensitively brings Till's external and internal conflicts to the stage. It highlights the power structures and authorities within an elite high school and at the same time sensitively tells the story of growing up between the classroom and virtual space. The production is aimed at both young audiences and adults.
Premiere February 20
Further performances: February 22, 24, 25, 27, and 28; March 4, 6, 7, 8, 12, 14, 18, 19, 21, 22, and 29; April 2 and 7, 2026
