Schiller Theater
Encyclopedia
The Schiller Theater is a theatre in Berlin
.
During the 1920s and 1930s, it was used by the Preußisches Staatstheater Berlin, and from 1951 to 1993 the Staatliche Schauspielbühnen Berlin. In 1993, the Berlin Senate decided to close it for financial reasons. It is now rented out for theatre performances and other events, and is currently used by the Staatsoper Unter den Linden as a second venue.
It is located in the district of Charlottenburg
of the borough of Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf
near Ernst-Reuter-Platz in Bismarckstraße 110 (formerly No. 117-120).
theatre architect Max Littmann
for the Schiller-Theater AG and the town of Charlottenburg.
The sculptural decoration was designed by the sculptors Düll and Petzold, and the decoration of the auditorium and the painted curtain is from Julius Mössel.
Professor Raphael Löwenfeld was the initiator and founding manager. The 1194-seat theatre was opened on 1 January 1907 with Die Räuber
by Friedrich Schiller
, and continued to be run by the Schiller-Theater-Gesellschaft with their own theatre company.
In the 1920s and 1930s, the building was the second venue of the Preußisches Staatstheater Berlin, whose main venue was the Schauspielhaus am Gendarmenmarkt
.
From 1937 to 1938, the theatre was extensively rebuilt for the city of Berlin by Paul Baumgarten. Baumgarten simplified the facade and the auditorium considerably, changing the appearance of the theatre with respect to the New Objectivity
of the 1920s, but also in line with the prevailing monumental architectural trend of National Socialism. A government box was incorporated. The sculptors Paul Scheurich and Karl Nocke and the painter Albert Birkle were involved in the conversion.
From the re-opening with Schiller's Kabale und Liebe in 1938 the theatre was run as the Schiller-Theater der Reichshauptstadt Berlin. The actor Heinrich George
was the manager, using the pseudonym Heinrich Schmitz.
The theatre was destroyed in an air strike on 23 November 1943. From 1950 to 1951, it was rebuilt for the city of Berlin according to plans by the architects Heinz Völker and Rolf Grosse. Some parts of the ruins of the old theatre were re-used for the new construction. At the re-opening on 6 September 1951, Schiller's Wilhelm Tell
was performed.
The Schiller Theater had 1067 seats, and was, as the Großes Haus, the main venue for the Staatlichen Schauspielbühnen Berlin, which used the Schlossparktheater in Steglitz
as the Kleines Haus, its second venue. It also used the Schiller-Theater Werkstatt in the building of the Schiller Theater (now a secondary venue of the GRIPS-Theater), and the Ballhaus Rixdorf as further venues.
Among the famous managers were Heinrich George
, Boleslaw Barlog, Hans Lietzau
, Boy Gobert
and Heribert Sasse
Notable directors included Gustaf Gründgens
, Jürgen Fehling, Samuel Beckett
, Fritz Kortner
, Boleslaw Barlog, Hans Lietzau
, Karl Paryla, George Tabori
, Hans Neuenfels
, Hans Hollmann
and Peter Zadek
.
In 1993, the Schiller Theater was closed on a decision of the Senate of Berlin because of the financial difficulties of Berlin, and all permanently employed staff and artists (including Bernhard Minetti
, Erich Schellow and Sabine Sinjen
) were dismissed. The closure of the largest German-speaking stage sparked protest and resentment, and the Senator for Culture at that time, Ulrich Roloff-Momin, was given the name "Schiller-Killer". It was then used as a venue for musicals and guest theatre performances.
From January to October 2000, the Maxim-Gorki-Theater
used the stage of the Schiller Theater.
The last performance of the state theatre there was the premiere of the play Weißalles und Dickedumm by Coline Serreau
with Katharina Thalbach
.
were accommodated in the Schiller Theater. The reconstruction work began in June 2010 and is expected to cost 239 million euros. The Staatsoper is expected to stay at the Schiller Theater for three years.
The first opera premiere in the temporary venue took place on 3 October 2010.
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
.
During the 1920s and 1930s, it was used by the Preußisches Staatstheater Berlin, and from 1951 to 1993 the Staatliche Schauspielbühnen Berlin. In 1993, the Berlin Senate decided to close it for financial reasons. It is now rented out for theatre performances and other events, and is currently used by the Staatsoper Unter den Linden as a second venue.
It is located in the district of Charlottenburg
Charlottenburg
Charlottenburg is a locality of Berlin within the borough of Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf, named after Queen consort Sophia Charlotte...
of the borough of Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf
Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf
Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf is the fourth borough of Berlin, formed in the 2001 administrative reform by merging the former boroughs of Charlottenburg and Wilmersdorf.-Overview:Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf covers the western centre of the City of Berlin...
near Ernst-Reuter-Platz in Bismarckstraße 110 (formerly No. 117-120).
History
The Schiller Theater was built from 1905 to 1906 according to plans by the MunichMunich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
theatre architect Max Littmann
Max Littmann
Max Littmann was a German architect.Littmann was educated in the Gewerbeakademie Chemnitz and the Technische Hochschule Dresden...
for the Schiller-Theater AG and the town of Charlottenburg.
The sculptural decoration was designed by the sculptors Düll and Petzold, and the decoration of the auditorium and the painted curtain is from Julius Mössel.
Professor Raphael Löwenfeld was the initiator and founding manager. The 1194-seat theatre was opened on 1 January 1907 with Die Räuber
Die Räuber
The Robbers was the first drama by German playwright Friedrich Schiller. The play was published in 1781 and premiered on January 13, 1782 in Mannheim, Germany. It was written towards the end of the German Sturm und Drang movement and has been considered by many critics, such as Peter Brooks, to...
by Friedrich Schiller
Friedrich Schiller
Johann Christoph Friedrich von Schiller was a German poet, philosopher, historian, and playwright. During the last seventeen years of his life , Schiller struck up a productive, if complicated, friendship with already famous and influential Johann Wolfgang von Goethe...
, and continued to be run by the Schiller-Theater-Gesellschaft with their own theatre company.
In the 1920s and 1930s, the building was the second venue of the Preußisches Staatstheater Berlin, whose main venue was the Schauspielhaus am Gendarmenmarkt
Konzerthaus Berlin
The Konzerthaus Berlin is a concert hall situated on the Gendarmenmarkt square in the central Mitte district of Berlin housing the German orchestra Konzerthausorchester Berlin...
.
From 1937 to 1938, the theatre was extensively rebuilt for the city of Berlin by Paul Baumgarten. Baumgarten simplified the facade and the auditorium considerably, changing the appearance of the theatre with respect to the New Objectivity
New Objectivity (architecture)
The New Objectivity is a name often given to the Modern architecture that emerged in Europe, primarily German-speaking Europe, in the 1920s and 30s. It is also frequently called Neues Bauen...
of the 1920s, but also in line with the prevailing monumental architectural trend of National Socialism. A government box was incorporated. The sculptors Paul Scheurich and Karl Nocke and the painter Albert Birkle were involved in the conversion.
From the re-opening with Schiller's Kabale und Liebe in 1938 the theatre was run as the Schiller-Theater der Reichshauptstadt Berlin. The actor Heinrich George
Heinrich George
Heinrich George , born Georg August Friedrich Hermann Schulz, was a German stage and film actor.He had one of his first roles in the Fritz Lang directed film Metropolis and the first film version of Berlin Alexanderplatz...
was the manager, using the pseudonym Heinrich Schmitz.
The theatre was destroyed in an air strike on 23 November 1943. From 1950 to 1951, it was rebuilt for the city of Berlin according to plans by the architects Heinz Völker and Rolf Grosse. Some parts of the ruins of the old theatre were re-used for the new construction. At the re-opening on 6 September 1951, Schiller's Wilhelm Tell
Wilhelm Tell (play)
William Tell is a drama written by Friedrich Schiller in 1804. The story focuses on the legendary Swiss marksman William Tell as well as on the Swiss struggle for independence from the Habsburg Empire in the early 14th century...
was performed.
The Schiller Theater had 1067 seats, and was, as the Großes Haus, the main venue for the Staatlichen Schauspielbühnen Berlin, which used the Schlossparktheater in Steglitz
Steglitz
Steglitz is a locality of the Steglitz-Zehlendorf borough in the south-west of Berlin, the capital of Germany. The locality also includes the neighbourhood of Südende.-History:...
as the Kleines Haus, its second venue. It also used the Schiller-Theater Werkstatt in the building of the Schiller Theater (now a secondary venue of the GRIPS-Theater), and the Ballhaus Rixdorf as further venues.
Among the famous managers were Heinrich George
Heinrich George
Heinrich George , born Georg August Friedrich Hermann Schulz, was a German stage and film actor.He had one of his first roles in the Fritz Lang directed film Metropolis and the first film version of Berlin Alexanderplatz...
, Boleslaw Barlog, Hans Lietzau
Hans Lietzau
Hans Lietzau was a German theatre director, actor, and producer. He was born in Berlin, Germany. In 1953 he directed Friedrich Schiller's The Robbers, with Ernst Schröder as Karl Moor. From 1969 to 1970 he was the theatre manager of the Deutsches Schauspielhaus in Hamburg...
, Boy Gobert
Boy Gobert
-Selected filmography:* The Ideal Woman * Die Fledermaus * Emma Hamilton * Shadow of Angels * The Roaring Fifties -External links:...
and Heribert Sasse
Notable directors included Gustaf Gründgens
Gustaf Gründgens
Gustaf Gründgens , born Gustav Heinrich Arnold Gründgens, was one of Germany's most famous and influential actors of the 20th century, intendant and artistic director of theatres in Berlin, Düsseldorf, and Hamburg...
, Jürgen Fehling, Samuel Beckett
Samuel Beckett
Samuel Barclay Beckett was an Irish avant-garde novelist, playwright, theatre director, and poet. He wrote both in English and French. His work offers a bleak, tragicomic outlook on human nature, often coupled with black comedy and gallows humour.Beckett is widely regarded as among the most...
, Fritz Kortner
Fritz Kortner
Fritz Kortner was an Austrian-born stage and film actor and theatre director.Kortner was born in Vienna as Fritz Nathan Kohn. He studied at the Vienna Academy of Music and Dramatic Art. After graduating, he joined Max Reinhardt in Berlin in 1911 and then Leopold Jessner in 1916. Also in that year...
, Boleslaw Barlog, Hans Lietzau
Hans Lietzau
Hans Lietzau was a German theatre director, actor, and producer. He was born in Berlin, Germany. In 1953 he directed Friedrich Schiller's The Robbers, with Ernst Schröder as Karl Moor. From 1969 to 1970 he was the theatre manager of the Deutsches Schauspielhaus in Hamburg...
, Karl Paryla, George Tabori
George Tabori
George Tabori was a Hungarian writer and theater director.-Life and career:Tabori was born in Budapest as György Tábori, a son of Kornél and Elsa Tábori. His father died in Auschwitz in 1944, but his mother and his brother Paul managed to escape the Nazis. His son Peter Tabori and again his son...
, Hans Neuenfels
Hans Neuenfels
Hans Neuenfels is a German writer, poet, film producer, librettist, theatre director and opera director.- Biography :...
, Hans Hollmann
Hans Hollmann
Hans Erich Hollmann was a German electronic specialist who made several breakthroughs in the development of radar....
and Peter Zadek
Peter Zadek
Peter Zadek was a German theatre and film director, play translator and screenwriter and is regarded as one of the greatest directors in German-speaking theater. He was the head of the Schauspielhaus Bochum, Bochum , the Deutsches Schauspielhaus, Hamburg and the Berliner Ensemble from 1992 to 1996...
.
In 1993, the Schiller Theater was closed on a decision of the Senate of Berlin because of the financial difficulties of Berlin, and all permanently employed staff and artists (including Bernhard Minetti
Bernhard Minetti
Bernhard Minetti was a German actor. He appeared in 50 films between 1931 and 1996 but is mostly known for his distinguished stage career.-Selected filmography:* Tiefland * It...
, Erich Schellow and Sabine Sinjen
Sabine Sinjen
Sabine Sinjen was a German film actress. She appeared in 54 films between 1957 and 1994.-Selected filmography:* Mädchen in Uniform * A Glass of Water * Napoléon II l'Aiglon...
) were dismissed. The closure of the largest German-speaking stage sparked protest and resentment, and the Senator for Culture at that time, Ulrich Roloff-Momin, was given the name "Schiller-Killer". It was then used as a venue for musicals and guest theatre performances.
From January to October 2000, the Maxim-Gorki-Theater
Maxim-Gorki-Theater
The Maxim Gorki Theatre is a theatre in Berlin-Mitte named after the Soviet writer, Maxim Gorky.-External links:* of the Maxim Gorki Theatre...
used the stage of the Schiller Theater.
The last performance of the state theatre there was the premiere of the play Weißalles und Dickedumm by Coline Serreau
Coline Serreau
Coline Serreau is a French actress, film director and writer.-Early life and education:She was born in Paris, France.In Paris, Serreau studied literature, music and theatre as well as the circus.-Career:...
with Katharina Thalbach
Katharina Thalbach
Katharina Thalbach is a German actress and film director.- Life and work :Katharina Thalbach comes from a particularly artistic-oriented family. Her father Benno Besson was a director, her mother Sabine Thalbach was an actress. Her late husband Thomas Brasch was an author. Her daughter Anna and...
.
Replacement venue for the Staatsoper
When the Staatsoper Unter den Linden had to close on May 31, 2010 for renovation, the company and the Staatskapelle BerlinStaatskapelle Berlin
The Staatskapelle Berlin is a German orchestra, the orchestra of the Berlin State Opera .The orchestra traces its roots to 1570, when Joachim II Hector, Elector of Brandenburg established an orchestra at his court...
were accommodated in the Schiller Theater. The reconstruction work began in June 2010 and is expected to cost 239 million euros. The Staatsoper is expected to stay at the Schiller Theater for three years.
The first opera premiere in the temporary venue took place on 3 October 2010.
Actors
The actors who have appeared in leading roles in the Schiller Theater include the following:
|
Sebastian Koch -Life and career:Koch was born in Karlsruhe and grew up in Stuttgart. His mother raised him alone, and he spent some time in the children's home where she worked... Werner Krauss Werner Johannes Krauss was a German stage and film actor.-Early life:Krauss was born at the parsonage of Gestungshausen in Upper Franconia, where his grandfather was Protestant pastor. He spent his childhood in Breslau and from 1901 attended the teacher's college at Kreuzburg... Wolfgang Liebeneiner Wolfgang Georg Louis Liebeneiner was a German actor, film director and theater director.He was born in Liebau in Prussian Silesia. In 1928, he was taught by Otto Falckenberg, the director of the Munich Kammerspiele, in acting and directing... Heinz Lieven Heinz Lieven is a German actor.-Life and work:Heinz Lieven grew up in Blankenese. In 1948 He began an actor's training with the actors Helmuth Gmelin and Bernhard Minetti. He married a makeup artist in 1966 and has two sons with her.Heinz Lieven started his stage career as actor at the Theater im... Bernhard Minetti Bernhard Minetti was a German actor. He appeared in 50 films between 1931 and 1996 but is mostly known for his distinguished stage career.-Selected filmography:* Tiefland * It... Götz Otto Götz Otto is a German actor known for his very tall stature. He is 198 cm tall and is often characterised by bleached blonde hair in his films.... |
Will Quadflieg Friedrich Wilhelm "Will" Quadflieg was a German actor from Oberhausen. He was the father of actor Christian Quadflieg. He is considered one of Germany's best post-war actors. One of his most widely recognized roles was in the title role in the 1960 film Faust. He also starred in a number of other... Walter Schmidinger Walter Schmidinger is an Austrian actor.-Selected filmography:* The Pedestrian * Ice Age * Derrick - Season 3, Episode 10 "Das Bordfest" * The Serpent's Egg... Ernst Schröder (actor) Ernst Schröder was a popular German theatre, film and TV actor.-Life:Born in Herne, Schröder began his acting career at the nearby Bochum Theatre in 1934, under the legendary director Saladin Schmitt. He worked there until 1936, also working as Assistant Director and Stage Designer... Sabine Sinjen Sabine Sinjen was a German film actress. She appeared in 54 films between 1957 and 1994.-Selected filmography:* Mädchen in Uniform * A Glass of Water * Napoléon II l'Aiglon... Katharina Thalbach Katharina Thalbach is a German actress and film director.- Life and work :Katharina Thalbach comes from a particularly artistic-oriented family. Her father Benno Besson was a director, her mother Sabine Thalbach was an actress. Her late husband Thomas Brasch was an author. Her daughter Anna and... Peter Ustinov Peter Alexander Ustinov CBE was an English actor, writer and dramatist. He was also renowned as a filmmaker, theatre and opera director, stage designer, author, screenwriter, comedian, humourist, newspaper and magazine columnist, radio broadcaster and television presenter... Elsa Wagner -Selected filmography:* The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari * Satanas * Daphne and the Diplomat * The Private's Job * Fracht von Baltimore * Heimkehr * Our Willi Is the Best... Antje Weisgerber Antje Weisgerber was a German film and television actress.-Selected filmography:* San Salvatore * The Ambassador's Wife * The Man Who Sold Himself * Lampenfieber * As You Like It... |
Notable premieres
- Samuel BeckettSamuel BeckettSamuel Barclay Beckett was an Irish avant-garde novelist, playwright, theatre director, and poet. He wrote both in English and French. His work offers a bleak, tragicomic outlook on human nature, often coupled with black comedy and gallows humour.Beckett is widely regarded as among the most...
: Warten auf Godot (1953, Regie: Samuel BeckettSamuel BeckettSamuel Barclay Beckett was an Irish avant-garde novelist, playwright, theatre director, and poet. He wrote both in English and French. His work offers a bleak, tragicomic outlook on human nature, often coupled with black comedy and gallows humour.Beckett is widely regarded as among the most...
) - Max FrischMax FrischMax Rudolf Frisch was a Swiss playwright and novelist, regarded as highly representative of German-language literature after World War II. In his creative works Frisch paid particular attention to issues relating to problems of human identity, individuality, responsibility, morality and political...
: Don Juan oder Die Liebe zur Geometrie (5. Mai 1953, simultaneously with the Schauspielhaus ZürichSchauspielhaus ZürichThe Schauspielhaus Zürich is one of the most prominent and important theatres in the German-speaking world. It is also known as "Pfauenbühne" after its location on the Pfauen Square in Zürich, Switzerland. The large theatre has 750 seats...
) - Martin WalserMartin WalserAt first the speech did not cause a great stir. Indeed, the audience present in Church of St. Paul received the speech with applause, though Walser's critic Ignatz Bubis did not applaud, as confirmed by television footage of the event...
: Eiche und Angora (23. September 1962) - Peter WeissPeter WeissPeter Ulrich Weiss was a German writer, painter, and artist of adopted Swedish nationality. He is particularly known for his plays Marat/Sade and The Investigation and his novel The Aesthetics of Resistance....
: Die Verfolgung und Ermordung Jean Paul Marats (29. April 1964) - Günter GrassGünter GrassGünter Wilhelm Grass is a Nobel Prize-winning German author, poet, playwright, sculptor and artist.He was born in the Free City of Danzig...
: Die Plebejer proben den Aufstand (15. Januar 1966) - Günter Grass: Davor (14. Februar 1969)
- Conor Cruise O'BrienConor Cruise O'BrienConor Cruise O'Brien often nicknamed "The Cruiser", was an Irish politician, writer, historian and academic. Although his opinion on the role of Britain in Northern Ireland changed over the course of the 1970s and 1980s, he always acknowledge values of, as he saw, the two irreconcilable traditions...
: Mörderische Engel (10. Januar 1971) - Thomas BernhardThomas BernhardThomas Bernhard was an Austrian novelist, playwright and poet. Bernhard, whose body of work has been called "the most significant literary achievement since World War II," is widely considered to be one of the most important German-speaking authors of the postwar era.- Life :Thomas Bernhard was...
: Einfach kompliziert (28. Februar 1986) - Pavel KohoutPavel KohoutPavel Kohout is a Czech and Austrian novelist, playwright, and poet. He was a member of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia, a Prague Spring exponent and dissident in 1970s until he was expelled to Austria...
: Patt (29. August 1987) - Thomas BernhardThomas BernhardThomas Bernhard was an Austrian novelist, playwright and poet. Bernhard, whose body of work has been called "the most significant literary achievement since World War II," is widely considered to be one of the most important German-speaking authors of the postwar era.- Life :Thomas Bernhard was...
: Elisabeth II (5. November 1989) - Volker BraunVolker BraunVolker Braun is a German writer. His works include Provokation für mich -- a collection of poems written between 1959 and 1964 and published in 1965, a play, Die Kipper , and Das ungezwungne Leben Kasts .-Life:Volker Braun, who worked in...
: Böhmen am Meer (11. März 1992)