COLOGNE.- The Berlin-based director and radio play author Paul Plamper (1972) has developed a radio play in space for Museum Ludwig and WDR radio. He will present an 'audio bar' in a gallery with empty tables and chairs – with the ambient sounds of a packed restaurant issuing from the speakers. The visitors can find their own way through the tables, take a seat and listen to the various conversations.

Suddenly an incident disrupts the scene. An occurrence outside on the street brings the table conversations to a standstill. It is time to step in, to help. A moment of quiet enters the room. Quiet in which two things are possible: intervening, or maintaining distance.

With his first 'radio play in space', Paul Plamper investigates such a suddenly de-scending silence as a political issue. RUHE 1 [= QUIET 1] inquires into the complex behaviour of a group by systematically teasing it apart into different attitudes and perspectives – the fears, selfish interests, feelings of complacency or moments of bravery. Starting with the apparent coexistence of everyday restaurant chitchat, this multidimensional radio play will arrive at a collective that reaches a decision.

RUHE 1 will be extended for the WDR and its season of radio plays in December to include documentary elements focusing on the dispersion of responsibility and per-sonal courage in public, as well as reactions to the installation und the author’s after-thoughts.

The play will be broadcast by WDR on 15 December, 11:05 p.m., WDR 3 open: pop drei, and on 23 December, 11:00 p.m., 1Live Plan B soundstories