Altes Theater

The Altes Theater in Düsseldorf was once a theatre built inside the old casting house of the Baroque sculptor Gabriel de Grupello. He had cast the Jan Wellem equestrian statue there in the late 17th century. The building became a comedy house around 1750 and regular theatre performances started in 1751. Elector Karl Theodor improved the Foundry House in 1781 with new decorations at his own expense. In 1805 it became the Bergische Nationalbühne, a German-language theatre for the region. The theatre was donated to the city by King Frederick William III in 1818. Joseph Derossi, an Austrian actor and director, became its first tenant. The seven-year-old Constanze Le Gaye made her debut there. Albert Lortzing and Rosina Regina Ahles also performed in Derossi’s ensemble. Playwright Karl Immermann worked there from 1829 and collaborated with Christian Dietrich Grabbe between 1831 and 1836. The building was rebuilt in 1831 with a classicist portico designed by Anton Schnitzler. A tympanum on four Ionic columns was added to the main façade. Today, the entrance to the Council Hall of the City of Düsseldorf stands in this area. The playhouse was finally replaced by the Stadttheater Düsseldorf in 1875.