MUSIC NEWS: April Albert brings KAPITALISM IS YOUR FRIEND! to Adelaide Fringe for 2026
KAPITALISM IS YOUR FRIEND!
A rollicking, interactive, dark comedy about political systems, David Hasselhoff and the Berlin Wall. Dancing may be required.
By April Albert - Adelaide Fringe 2026
21 February to 7 March - Goodwood Theatre & Studios
“You can’t take your eyes off her” - The Age
“Raw… inspiring. Go see it” - Australian Arts Review
International performer April Albert brings her acclaimed solo work KAPITALISM IS YOUR FRIEND! To Goodwood Theatre & Studios as part of Adelaide Fringe 2026, delivering a sharp, funny and fierce theatrical experience that interrogates capitalism, the patriarchy, myth-making and the long afterlife of political change.
Franzi has just woken up from a coma in East Berlin. She’s been asleep since 1989. The Wall has fallen, the world has shifted, and the heroes she remembers no longer mean what they once did. As Franzi tries to understand this strange new reality, the audience is invited to help her make sense of it through laughter, music, confrontation and movement.
Blending biting political commentary with an infectious soundtrack and live interaction, KAPITALISM IS YOUR FRIEND! is a high-energy, darkly comic dissection of systems that promised freedom and delivered something else entirely. The Berlin Wall is not the only thing that comes down in this unashamedly feminist work; capitalism, the patriarchy and even David Hasselhoff are put under the spotlight.
Growing up between the United States and Germany, April Albert is multilingual. She has studied and performed in Germany, the UK, the US, and Australia, experiencing the extremes of American capitalism and Germany’s ongoing reckoning with its past.
“The basis of all of my performance work is about interrogating how the past informs our present,” says Albert, “and how do we move forward collectively? ”
Having drawn strong praise, described as “An unashamedly feminist look at what women have gained and lost over the past 30 years,” by Keith Gow, Playwright/Theatre Blogger, the critically acclaimed piece is known for its raw power and commanding performance. KAPITALISM IS YOUR FRIEND!
A Note from Franzi:
In 1989, I was sixteen when the Wall fell. It felt like anything was possible.
In 2017, I was forty-six when everything cracked again.
And now, in 2025, I stand inside that break, not to mourn what’s lost, but to move inside what’s left.
Drawing on surrealism, absurdism, and direct audience address, April creates works that interrogate power structures and ask how cultural memory shapes our present. April’s projects have been supported by Metro Arts (Brisbane), Theatre Works (Melbourne), Bakehouse Studio (Adelaide), Women’s Circus, Darebin Arts Speakeasy, Indy Fringe (USA), Melbourne Fringe, Adelaide Fringe, Sprechwerktheater, and Karlstorbahnhof (Germany). She holds an M.A. in Text and Performance Studies from the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and King’s College London. She is currently completing her PhD in Theatre and Audiences at Queensland University of Technology.
Get ready for one of Adelaide Fringe’s most electrifying seasons yet, packed with world-class theatre, bold new voices, immersive experiences and late-night discoveries. KAPITALISM IS YOUR FRIEND! is a must-see for audiences who like their comedy sharp, their politics fearless, and their theatre alive.
KAPITALISM IS YOUR FRIEND!
Adelaide Fringe 2026
Dates: 21 February – 7 March
Venue: Goodwood Theatre & Studios
Times: 6 pm & 9 pm
Tickets on sale now
