Die Dreigroschenoper

Brecht aims to expose the corrupt bourgeoisie with The Threepenny Opera. On one side, the beggar king Peachum appears as a prime example of the businessman for whom need and poverty are nothing more than means to an end; on the other side, the ruthless criminal Mackie Messer reveals himself as a prototype of so-called bourgeois solidity. Peachum mobilizes the masses of beggars, organizes a demonstration of misery, and threatens to disrupt the coronation procession if the corrupt police chief Tiger-Brown refuses to arrest Mackie Messer, who has been disturbing Peachum's circles.