Review: THE DASSLERS at The Bridewell

Taking as its theme a post-war evening when the Dassler brothers’ lawyer Hans (Matteo Caporusso) comes to deliver an ultimatum, the play centres on whether fastidious sports shoe designer Adi (Edward Tarling) or egotistical salesman Rudi (Finn Samuels) would be the best man to lead the company and assume overall decision-making responsibility for their shoemaking factory. The catalyst, is the looming 1948 London Olympics at which Germany will not be permitted to participate, but at which the US team expects to dominate — with, they hope, the help of the most advanced footwear. The US coaches know the German product is the best, but are concerned about shipping hold-ups made less certain by long-testing, frequent design tweaking and production line fine-tuning. The ultimatum, which demands a single unequivocal voice to lead the firm, is their attempt to eliminate the delays. Or is there perhaps, more to the situation than is initially apparent?

In the event, history tells us that after an acrimonious argument, during which Adi’s wife Käthe (Lula Marsh) asserted that her husband's founding of the business and technical know-how was vitally important, and Rudi’s wife Friedl (Siân Godsmark) made hopeless attempts to keep the peace, the brothers drew a line under their partnership and accepted an end to their sibling bond. Adi Dassler went on to form Adidas, while Rudi developed Puma in direct competition. Ironically, the brothers who never reconciled, are buried at opposite ends of the small Bavarian cemetery at Herzogenaurach, the town where both their respective factories are still headquartered.

And so to the play, which for this initial trial staging at the Bridewell has been directed by Sapphire Shoferpoor. Doubtless with budget in mind, Radford has focussed largely within the confines of the post-war home above the factory which the brothers shared with their respective wives and their domineering mother Pauline (Anne Rutter) who makes a fleeting appearance. There is a tendency to deliver history lessons via barely disguised theatrical devices, as when Käthe encourages her husband Adi to tell her once more about the time he met Jesse Owens trackside. We willingly absorb the moment and forgive the clunkiness of the effort (which — period alert — includes a reference to video). The same can be said of the attempts at naturalistic dialogue which barely ring true on occasions. Certainly a wife of this period could be outspoken, but expletives would have been unthinkable from a cultivated woman even during a private conversation with her husband. These stylistic misgivings aside, the team acquit themselves adequately, attempting to imbue quirks and personalities to their characters. In this attempt, there is a tendency for the actors to overplay stereotypes, but this was the opening night for a fringe show and a certain amount lee-way must be afforded.

In all, Radford has landed on a fascinating and pivotal moment in the lives of two largely overlooked individuals. Their story is compelling and with some key rethinks around staging and a deeper dive into the character layering and their conflicting personalities, there is a play with potential here. I wish the creative team the very best in implementing those revisions which they’ll undoubtedly deem necessary, and hearing of the work’s future development.

THE DASSLERS continues its brief stint at the Bridewell until 23rd May and runs 90 minutes straight through (without interval).