Irmgard Ritterbusch

Leontes, king of Sicily, tries to convince his friend Polyxenes, king of Bohemia, to stay longer as his guest. But only Hermione, Leontes' wife, can talk Polyxenes into not leaving. Leontes gets suspicious. Is his wife having an affair with his friend? Leontes tries to find out about it...

Jewish and Christian music merge in this film about one of the oldest choirs in Germany, the choir in Magdeburg Cathedral, which has been performing together with the head cantor of the Jewish community in West Berlin, Estrongo Nachama, since 1980. The choir already existed when Walther von der Vogelweide celebrated Christmas here; the cathedral has survived devastation and wars, most recently the bombing of Magdeburg in January 1945. The choir sings "Oh, how the city lies so desolate, which was full of people". The choir now rehearses and sings together with Estrongo Nachama.

The film shows the concentrated faces of a brigade of women above the microscopes, the sudden bursts of laughter, the familiar conversations during work breaks. Then Sylvia with the pretty face, who is too fat and also handicapped by a hip condition, tells us how she imagines her husband: He should be honest, strong and loving. And none of the women laugh. The 26-year-old disabled Sylvia, one of the strong personalities in this brigade, is accepted by everyone because she is honest, reliable and collegial. She is sometimes sad, but almost always infectiously cheerful. "How can you live as an eternal sourpuss," she says. "Sylvi, why don't you sing?" one of her colleagues calls out while she's working. Sylvia has a beautiful voice. But she doesn't sing in front of the camera.