Cosy and uncomfortable at the same time—that’s Mon Général in Neustadt an der Weinstraße. Daniela and Peter Miklusz serve breakfast, tarts and quiches in this theatre-cum-café during the day. In the evenings, the two actors take to the stage themselves, for education and to shake people up. Their goal is to strengthen democracy. To prevent that history repeats itself.
Peter Miklusz stands in front of a blue-painted wall and looks back at the most important stages of his career. There are small and large photos showing his performances: Peter as Woyzeck and as Hamlet and starring in the television series and films Goldjungs, Kuʼdamm and Charité—and as an SS officer in the short film Nakam, which was shortlisted for an Oscar in 2022. “I always have to play the Nazis,” says the actor, who campaigns against xenophobia and racism in real life.
Campaigning for democracy and freedom and standing up to right-wing extremism: Daniela and Peter Miklusz.
Peter and his wife Daniela hung up a sheet of paper in a frame in their café clearly stating that the Mon Général stands up against the rise of right-wing extremism and fascism and is in favour of democracy and freedom. Even more photos are on the wall above this notice. It is a Wall of Resistance dedicated to famous people who opposed National Socialism. The actor couple opened Mon Général Café Culturel in September 2023.
It is cosy at Mon Général, yet uncomfortable.
Located on the German Wine Route, the theatre-cum-café serves typical French delicacies such as air-dried salami and crème de caramel au beurre salé and offers food for thought in the evenings when it is converted into a theatre. The small, dark blue platform, which seats just six people during the day, becomes a stage. A maximum of 25 guests can then watch as Daniela and Peter slip into various roles. Many of their plays are very profound—to their own surprise. “We never thought our café would become so political,” says Peter.
The café opened its doors for the first time in September 2023.
It is a dream come true for the couple.
It is dedicated to Daniela’s father André who was born in France.
Mon Général was his nickname, because he adored Charles de Gaulle.
It is dedicated to Daniela’s father André who was born in France.
… whereas theatre performances take place in the evenings.
Comedies, perhaps their own interpretation of Stephen King’s Misery and, yes, a couple of political plays as well—that’s what the two had in mind when they founded Mon Général. Peter works as a freelance film and television actor. However, his origins were actually in theatre, just like that of his wife, Daniela. He studied at the Ernst Busch Academy of Dramatic Arts in Berlin, then took up an engagement at the Burgtheater in Vienna and later moved to the Berliner Ensemble and to the Schauspiel Köln theatre companies.
As entrepreneurs and artists we actually feel obliged to do educational work.
Peter Miklusz
Daniela was born and raised in Ludwigshafen. She studied acting at the Bern Academy of the Arts and was a permanent member of the Bern theatre ensemble, playing roles such as Bridget in Mondlicht (Moonlight) and Hanna, the washerwoman, in Der große Diktator (The great dictator). Daniela and Peter met in Bern. Peter stood in for a colleague there in Ulysses. “That’s my fiancée,” was one of the lines he said to Daniela on stage at the time.
The Wall of Resistance in the café is dedicated to famous people who opposed National Socialism.
Setting up Mon Général is a dream come true for the couple. The theatre-cum-café is dedicated to Daniela’s father André. He was French and adored Charles de Gaulle, whom he had met once as a child and whose commitment to the Franco-German friendship he admired. He was therefore nicknamed Mon Général just like the former French president. It was André who passed on his love of good food to his daughter celebrating breakfast with every imaginable delicacy sometimes lasting into the afternoon. It is these images that transport Daniela back to her childhood and to family holidays in Brittany. The environment at Mon Général is modelled on exactly this cosy atmosphere. “We like it when people spend a lot of time here and when things run a little slower,” says the actress.
A Charles de Gaulles portrait is there, too. One of the best, Peter thinks: “It captures an entire life.”
But just cosiness—that’s not enough for Peter and Daniela. It’s not for nothing that Mon Général is both a café and a theatre and, if you like, a small centre of democracy in Neustadt. They presented the Ich bin Anne (I am Anne) exhibition together with the Berlin Anne Frank Zentrum. Since then, a banner depicting the Jewish girl’s face and a quote by her has been hanging on the façade of the listed building on the edge of the city centre. A rainbow flag flutters in the wind above it, flanked by two French flags. The window shutters are painted in a muted blue shade, like many other accessories in the café. Quotes by Oscar Wilde and Charles de Gaulle are affixed to them. Right next to the bar are quotes by Dietrich Boenhoeffer, among others: “Schweigen im Angesicht des Bösen ist selbst böse” (silence in the face of evil is itself evil).
A quote by Anne Frank decorates the theatre façade. It translates as: How nice it is that nobody has to wait a moment to make the world a better place.
They miss this political form of theatre on the big stages. “Big theatres are rather concerned with themselves,” says Daniela. “There is not much room there to deal with what happens in the world.” With Mon Général they enjoy the freedom to devote themselves to the topics that are important to them. At the moment, they are particularly concerned with the resurgence of right-wing ideas. A good number of their plays deals with the National Socialist era. It makes Peter rather thoughtful that many spectators think the couple’s commitment is courageous. “As entrepreneurs and artists we actually feel obliged to do educational work.”
Taking a firm stand: “We will always do political theatre, too,” says Peter.
Peter and Daniela particularly enjoy performing plays based on Bertolt Brecht such as recently Rechtsfindung in which a judge and a public prosecutor have to decide whether their fear of the Nazis is stronger than their conscience. Open panel discussions after the performances are an integral part of the theatre evenings at Mon Général. The actors ask their audience questions or they simply wait to see what comes from the audience. These discussions are often very personal, says Daniela. “It’s much more interesting than in large theatres,” adds her husband. And one thing is clear to him, even though he would be delighted to stage a comedy again soon: “We will always do political theatre, too.”
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