Finally, the complete recordings of Die vier Nachrichter, the “Four Newsboys”, are available on CD.  The disc traces the cabaret ensemble’s development from student jests to theatrical parodies and sharp political satires.  It was a collection of true all-round talents: Helmut Käutner, Kurd E. Heyne, Bobby Todd and various musicians under the pseudonym “Frank Norbert” wrote and composed the shows, designed the sets and costumes, staged the productions and performed with a brilliant mixture of song, speech, and dance.  Their light-hearted nonsense, spoofing the highbrow theatre scene, and their fresh, impudent attacks on human failings enthralled their audiences.  After cabaret appearances, the Nachrichter expanded into a touring theatre troupe with full-scale shows, which they performed alongside their cabaret programs.  But as the Nazis rose to power, political observation and censorship began to take their toll.  The Nachrichter cleverly hid their critiques between the punchlines, as they sang about the intolerance and political manipulations of the day and appealed to the listeners’ emotions with deep-felt tones of tenderness and melancholy.  The ensemble was finally banned in 1935, but these sound recordings bear witness to their work.

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Bear Family Records
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Phone (+49)+4794-9300-0
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