You will be touring Germany with your new program “The Redeemer” until March 2024 and according to the press release, fans can look forward to two hours of indulgence and guilt-free. Due to the unending crises of the past few years and endless bad news, I have that Feeling that many people have lost a little of their basic trust.
The basic trust that everything will be okay in the end? Exactly! Due to pandemics, wars, inflation and the climate crisis, there are increasing uncertainties and doubts as to whether the future still has much good in store for us. That’s why I thought to myself: Just be the one you can hold on to for a little while. The visitors can cast their worries on me for two hours, I will take on their sins – and after that everything will be fine.
What a beautiful promise…Welcome to the world of stand-up comedy! The program is of course very exaggerated and funny – but I would also like to offer a little food for thought: For example, that we cannot easily change many things in life – but our attitude towards them can.
Will it also be about the church? Absolutely! And of course Jesus also plays a role in the program: this all-round fragrant guy who was a mixture of Kurt Cobain and Otto and who everyone loved – except for the Romans.
How often do you test out the gags in your circle of friends in advance of a new show? When I’ve come up with something nice and new, Radio Schröder is particularly happy to be on the air. Then I test every day to see what works and what doesn’t. This gives me a feeling for whether the gags are successful at all, whether I need a different timing or have to change something. When I look at understanding faces, I know: I can safely delete this saying again.
They also like to say rude things. In the woke age, with sometimes extreme political correctness, isn’t it becoming increasingly difficult as a comedian? There are certainly more and more sensitivities today that I have to take into account. But then I have to work more with the scalpel and less with the sword and work along the border of a possible shitstorm, which is a good challenge. The more sensitive the people, the greater the risk. I find that exciting.
After thirty years in showbiz: What do you see as the depths of this industry? Behind the scenes there is a surprising amount of confusion, sadness, alcohol, drugs and depression. I know a lot of unhappy celebrities and have seen a lot of crashes. I am all the more grateful that I have such a great talent for happiness.
Stars like Kurt Krömer and Nora Tschirner now speak openly about their depression. Krömer has even published a book on the topic. And there are many more examples, but they don’t want to make it public. This is really a big topic! And there is also a lot of envy and resentment. On the red carpet and in front of the camera, most people like to pretend that they love all of their colleagues – but then the knives are sharpened behind their backs. You secretly enjoy every shitstorm that the other person receives. However, I have rarely experienced mutual support.
Why do you only show yourself in public appearances in the form of your stage ego with all the details. I really like that I can go through my life anonymously as a private person. If I were to walk through my district in Hamburg as my alter ego Atze, I would hardly have a moment of peace. I value my private life very much and love to remain largely unrecognized. Sometimes people who recognize me even without stage costume give me a friendly, knowing wink – but that rarely happens.
So basically being a celebrity isn’t for you at all? If there’s one thing I can do without, it’s celebrity. I don’t want fame or anything unforgettable and I see myself as a service provider who wants to bring joy but be a private person as soon as I leave the stage. If I pass out at some point, I should be left alone. Apart from a certain sense of mission as a comedian, I have zero star qualities. Neither in a positive or negative sense.
You have been living in Hamburg for more than four years. Is it true that you almost never had your own apartment before? During my time in Münsterland, I also had a home there. But there was a long phase in my career where I took on 300 jobs a year and therefore lived almost exclusively in hotels. That’s why I’m actually not cut out for everyday things like shopping. I’ve never done that before and only really got to know it in Hamburg.
Actually? That was the first time I went to the supermarket for a large purchase, where I immersed myself in completely new worlds and first had to organize a chip for the shopping cart. It took a while until I finally got into the groove – but now my pearl sends me off on my own. Only sometimes I still stand there, latently overwhelmed, and ask myself: Fennel? What does it actually look like?
Were you also such a late bloomer when it came to moving out of your home? You could say that. I was already 26 years old – and even then my mother was still crying, clinging and begging me: Boy, stay with me! The world out there is evil and harsh – you won’t cope. And in a way she was right.
Next year you will be 60. What do you enjoy about getting older and what can you do without? I think it’s great that my ability to enjoy life continues to increase. When life gives me gifts, I can enjoy it much more – even the very quiet moments. What I find very annoying is that my skin is becoming increasingly sagging. To this day I am a physical person and train diligently; which doesn’t change the fact that it hangs in the most impossible places – for example on the elbows. Terrible!
What is the biggest challenge in life for you? Dealing with the realism of the world. Of course I could also say with the cruelty, abysses and the hatred that unfortunately surrounds us more and more. That’s why I try as best I can to build the world the way I like it, but I always come up against my limits. Realism? That’s not for me!
