"The Giving Tree" by Shel Silverstein has been considered the most controversial of all children's books for more than half a century - if it can be considered controversial at all. The lifelong love story between a tree and a boy, in which one side always gives everything and the other always takes what is offered, is both sad and touching: at the end, an old man sits on a tree stump - "and the tree was happy". Does the picture book tell of the unconditional love of parents towards their children, does it tell of the mercilessness of people towards nature?

The Rothko String Quartet takes the story literally - and puts nature on trial in the Kaisersaal of Esslingen's Court House. Love or exploitation, the plants are on trial. And mankind? Plaintiff and defendant in one, the Rothko String Quartet presents music from the Renaissance to the present day. From Maddalena Casulana's "O Notte" to Gabriella Smith's "Carrot Revolution", the evening will feature pieces about repentant gardeners and the raging of nature.

[text: PODIUM Esslingen]