Theater am Schiffbauerdamm

The Theatre am Schiffbauerdamm stands beside the river Spree in Berlin’s Mitte district. Built in the late 19th century, the Neo-baroque building was designed by Heinrich Seeling. It opened in 1892 as the Neues Theater with Goethe’s Iphigenie auf Tauris. Gerhart Hauptmann’s naturalistic drama Die Weber had its first private performance there in 1893. Max Reinhardt managed the theatre from 1903 to 1906 before it became known for operetta. The theatre became famous for premieres that shaped modern drama. Carl Zuckmayer’s comedy Der fröhliche Weinberg returned it to serious theatre in 1925. The Threepenny Opera premiered there on 31 August 1928, and Ödön von Horváth’s Italienische Nacht followed in 1931. Bertolt Brecht directed Marieluise Fleißer’s Pioneers in Ingolstadt in 1929, creating a scandal. Gustaf Gründgens made his debut as a director with Jean Cocteau’s Orphée, and the Truppe 31 company also appeared. Today the building houses the Berliner Ensemble, founded by Helene Weigel and Brecht in 1949. Notable actors such as Lotte Lenya, Carola Neher and Peter Lorre once performed on its stage. After wartime closure it reopened and became one of Germany’s most prestigious theatres. The interior is now protected as part of a historic preservation project.