Werner Düggelin

Werner Düggelin (7 December 1929 – 6 August 2020) was a Swiss theatre director.

Life Provenance and early years Düggelin was born in Zürich. He grew up in Siebnen in the canton of Schwyz. Slightly unusually for the time, he was born into a family without any stated religious affiliation . Werner Düggelin attended schools successively in Siebnen, Engelberg, Trogen and Neuchâtel. According to one source he was required to leave both the "Monastery School" in Engelberg and the "Convict School" in Trogen (both subsequently renamed) "early". He never completed the course or received a degree. During 1949/50 Düggelin worked as a Theater manager at Asnières on the north-western outskirts of the French capital.

Pioneer Between 1952 and 1963 Düggelin worked as a freelance theatre director in Switzerland and abroad. It was also at Darmstadt that he directed the German language premiere of Marcel Achard's "Darf ich mitspielen?" ("Might I play with you?"). This marked the beginning of what several commentators identify as a golden age for the Basel Theatre. Supported by an exceptional team, he oversaw a succession of engaged and politically tinted productions which caught the spirit of a new generation, provoking commentators and moving audiences to take a more frequent interest in Basel theatre productions.

Later productions included Beckett's "Endgame" (1994) and Molière's "The Misanthrope" (1997), both at Zürich. A number of tribute pieces published in celebration of Düggelin's ninetieth birthday made the point that, despite his advanced age, he was still working at the profession he loved, his ear for the dramatists' true intent more acutely tuned than ever.

Though Düggelin was primarily revered as a stage director, completeness requires mention of his television work. Some of his best recalled small-screen adaptations and productions included "L'Histoire du soldat" (1975) by Ramuz, "The Black Spider" (1986) by Gotthelf and a "Hommage to Tinguely" (1989). Swiss artists with whom he worked include Jean Tinguely, Eva Aeppli, Bernhard Luginbühl and Schang Hutter.

Honours and awards

Stagings (selection)