About the work
“Ich fühl's nicht” (I Don't Feel It) is a stage adaptation by Katrin Plötner and Svenja Käshammer of Liv Strömquist's non-fiction comic “Den rödaste rosen slår ut” (published in English as “The Reddest Rose Unfolds”), first published in Swedish in 2019 and translated into German by Katharina Erben (German edition 2020, avant-verlag). In it, Strömquist examines how romantic love is changing under the conditions of late capitalism. The stage version premiered on 22 January 2022 at Staatsschauspiel Dresden, directed by Plötner.
Plot
Drawing on examples from Socrates and Kierkegaard to Beyoncé and Leonardo DiCaprio's string of relationships, Strömquist explores why falling in love is often difficult today and why relationships end. She asks whether biological, social or psychological causes are to blame, and ultimately makes a case for a kind of love freed from the constraints of consumer society.
Cultural significance
The book is among Strömquist's most widely translated works and has sold more than 150,000 copies in France and Germany alone. The stage adaptation was praised by critics for its mix of analytical sharpness and comic timing.