The queen may be the opposite of elegant, but she is blessed with a big mouth and a warm heart. She wants to please her husband, but he doesn't appreciate it - an old married couple, after all. One in financial difficulties. One solution would be to marry the son Arthur to the daughter of the English royal family. But where would they get the dowry from? "Perhaps the Holy Grail would be something," suggests King Paul. "The English are definitely still lacking that."

Volker Ruhlig, who appears as King Paul on stage at the Großhennersdorf community center, is not an actor. He is a painter by profession - and in his free time he is a member of the Großhennersdorf carnival club.

Here, carnival is celebrated differently. There are no comedy speeches or Elferrat, and no majorettes either. "We have dancers," says President Hartmut Tittmann. The Großhennersdorf carnival club prefers theater. "That developed with the move to this building."

A house with small, colorful rooms instead of a large hall. "What we do fits in well here," says Hartmut Tittmann. "We've found a niche for ourselves." The middle between carnival and theater.

This year, the fools have dared to put on their own play for the first time. It is called "All you need is Love": The last Roman has left England, and now royal families rule. The Scots would like to marry their son Arthur to Artrosé, princess of the English royal family. But the rules are different there: appearances are important, and so is money. To convince the English, his parents send the Scottish Prince Arthur to search for the Holy Grail.

This year, the fools have dared to put on their own play for the first time. It is called "All you need is Love": The last Roman has left England, and now royal families rule. The Scots would like to marry their son Arthur to Artrosé, princess of the English royal family. But the rules are different there: appearances are important, and so is money. To convince the English, his parents send the Scottish Prince Arthur to search for the Holy Grail.

What we do may not appeal to everyone," says Michael Peschke. He plays the evil fairy who wants to prevent Arthur from finding the Holy Grail. His main job is driving tankers carrying biofuel all over Europe. "Some people may prefer the typical Upper Lusatian carnival. But this is our unique selling point."

Another special feature: The Großhennersdorf fools don't just work with acting on stage, but also with film. "We record everything beforehand that is difficult to implement in terms of stage technology," explains Hartmut Tittmann. For example, for "Feuerzangenbowle," the carnival club filmed in the old village school - and had former teachers appear in supporting roles. For "All you need is Love," the fools were guests at Mortka Castle in the municipality of Lohsa last summer. And this time, well-known Großhennersdorf residents have taken on small film roles. Pastor Alexander Wieckowski, for example, breaks off his service to go in search of the Holy Grail.

Also on display: Horst Palme, known in the region for riding his folding bike from Großhennersdorf to Zittau or Löbau every day.

Preparations for the plays begin in spring. Patrick Weißig from the Hillersche Villa then works on the dialogues. "Then the roles are assigned," explains Hartmut Tittmann. And in such a way that they also fit the person. "We now know the characters and know who can play what."

The Großhennersdorf carnival club has 35 permanent members, plus twelve children. Filming takes place in the summer, and from September onwards there will be rehearsals for the stage parts once a week. It won't be too much, says Patrick Weißig. In addition to directing, he also plays the role of the English king. "Then I wouldn't do it. For me it's a gift to the region." He is more concerned about making sure that everything really goes smoothly for the performances.

This year, the troupe is not only working with film sequences again, but also with a narrator and live music. Michael Peschke also says: "In the first few years, I still had stage fright." That has now subsided. He has a strategy to make sure he knows his lines. "I always go through the script early in the morning before work while I have my first coffee," he says.

(from an article in the SZ - February 2017 / By Susanne Sodan)

For our theme "All you need is love..." we were also able to participate in the Jacubzburg in Mortka - with the kind support of Dr. med. André Jakubetz. Simply put: A truly fantastic backdrop that you should definitely see. A trip is definitely worth it!