Jake Mace
Storyteller, actor and puppeteer Clare Fraenkel’s upcoming show I Was a German arrives at Edinburgh Festival Fringe next week, an autobiographical story exploring her journey to reclaim her citizenship taken from her grandfather by the Nazis. Using visuals, original music, storytelling, projections and shadow puppetry, there was plenty to unpack when we caught up with Clare for a pixelated pint.
You can catch I Was a German from August 1st – 24th at Studio at ZOO Southside from 13:50 (60mins). Tickets are available through the EdFringe Online Box Office.
Jake: Hi Clare, your show I Was a German explores your quest to reclaim your grandfather’s lost citizenship – tell us about the journey you’ve been on so far and why you decided to bring it to the stage.
Clare: Basically, a whole sequence of events kicked off, after Brexit. Firstly, I found out I could get a German passport, but it came with a dilemma, as my grandparents were Jewish refugees and I was essentially reclaiming the citizenship that was taken from them by the Nazis. And as both are long gone, I couldn’t ask them how they felt about it all.
I hoped that ‘reclaiming’ their German nationality was a positive thing to do, so I went for it. But then I made a slightly incredible discovery – I found out my grandad published a book, “Farewell to Germany”, about why he never moved back home. Well, I completely devoured it, and it blew me away, because his reasons for staying in the UK weren’t what I’d imagined. All my assumptions about my grandparents’ feelings about both Britain and Germany were wrong, and I realised his story didn’t feel like any I’d ever heard before, so I wanted to share it: as an actor, my natural instinct was to weave our two stories into a play! So I Was A German gives voice to my grandad’s true refugee tale from the past, and my slightly conflicted perspective from the present.
Jake: Tell us about what the audience can expect coming into the show, and what they might not expect about the show.
Clare: Well I really wanted to tell these two stories in a way that brought the audience along on the journey. I have a pretty hefty background in performing new writing, so I’m used to developing new work, but this is my first full length play as a writer and performer. So it’s been quite a development process, using all the skills and ideas I’ve picked up over the years… and especially because I really wanted to make a show that felt like a full piece of theatre, not a monologue. Early on I explored a bunch of possibilities, from making it immersive and playing with binaural sound! In the end those ideas were left behind in R&D, but we still tell my grandfather’s story in quite a playful way, using projection and original music.
Audiences might not expect us to have had so much fun with the storytelling, given that we dip into a very heavy historical period of history. The thing is, my grandad had a very wry sense of humour, which comes through in his writing, so it really came from that. And also maybe something to do with me being a puppeteer – in fact I seem to have assembled a crack team of puppeteers to make this show – even the composer and director are puppeteers too! We puppeteered footage of shadow silhouettes on overhead projectors, then filmed the images, so it’s a real analogue/digital mash up. That’s another thing that may surprise audiences- this historical story is told in quite an interactive, fresh way.
Jake: What are you hoping the audience might take away from the experience, if anything?
Clare: I’d love them to feel like they’ve had an insight into a part of history that feels surprising and new. And a historical perspective that they haven’t encountered before. Maybe a bit of self-reflection, if they’re that way inclined! And I did say we’d made it enjoyable, so I dare you not to be humming one of Arran Glass’ songs – I’ve worked with him before on other shows, and he’s incredible at writing earworms!
Jake: With Edinburgh Fringe 2025 just around the corner, what are you most excited for?
Clare: With the show itself, I’m most excited for getting it in front of audiences – I’ve found the story really connects with people, so I’m looking forward to being in the room with Edinburgh audiences and hopefully having a good chat with some of them afterwards! And outside the show, I’m excited to pootle around Edinburgh, and get to enjoy one of the best Festivals in the world! My kids will be up some of the time, so I’ll take them to some kids’ shows. I took them to Olaf Falafel’s kids’ stand up in 2023 – and they still talk about it, so that’s on the list! And for me, I have plenty to see, starting with Out Of The Forest’s Bury The Hatchet. I performed with them in the Brief Life and Mysterious Death of Boris III and I know their latest will be an absolute corker.
Jake: Given the themes of Binge Fringe, if your show was a beverage of any kind (alcoholic, non-alcoholic – be as creative as you like!), what would it be and why?
Clare: Pimms but made with Schnapps. And instead of cucumber… sauerkraut. And instead of lemonade – pickle juice! A mixed-up British/German/Jewish hybrid. I’m going to call it a Pimm-kled Schnappkin. They’ll be drinking it all around town, I tell you!
A reminder, you can catch I Was a German from August 1st – 24th at Studio at ZOO Southside from 13:50 (60mins). Tickets are available through the EdFringe Online Box Office.
Lamesha Ruddock
