The Robbers

Die Räuber The Robbers
First edition of the play
Written by	Friedrich Schiller
Date premiered	13 January 1782 (1782-01-13)
Place premiered	Mannheim
Original language	German
Genre	Tragedy

The Robbers (Die Räuber, German pronunciation: [diː ˈʁɔʏbɐ] ^ⓘ) is the first dramatic play by German playwright Friedrich Schiller. The play was published in 1781 and premiered on 13 January 1782 in Mannheim and was inspired by Leisewitz's earlier play Julius of Taranto. It was written towards the end of the German Sturm und Drang ("Storm and Stress") movement, and many critics, such as Peter Brooks, consider it very influential in the development of European melodrama.^[1] The play astounded its Mannheim audience and made Schiller an overnight sensation. It later became the basis for Verdi's opera of the same name, I masnadieri.