Rheinisches Landestheater Neuss

The Rheinische Landestheater stands in Neuss, a city on the Rhine in the Düsseldorf region. It is the largest touring theatre company in North Rhine-Westphalia, performing both at its own house and across the state. The theatre began in 1925 as the Rheinische Städtebundtheater, a cooperative of towns including Neuss, Kleve and Solingen. In 1937 it became the Rheinische Landestheater, and in 2000 moved into the Horten-Haus on Oberstraße. The building was praised in 2005 as a model example of modern theatre architecture. The theatre is known for staging premieres and notable revivals. German first performances have included Egon Erwin Kisch and Jaroslav Hašek’s ‘The Journey Round Europe in 365 Days’ and Clifford Odets’s ‘Family of Noah’. Under directors such as Hermann Wetzke and Karl Wesseler, stars like Willy Millowitsch and Brigitte Mira appeared on its stage. Today the ensemble numbers seventeen actors, and the theatre runs a busy programme of children’s and youth theatre alongside adult productions. Visitors enter a spacious foyer with floor-to-ceiling windows and a view of Neuss’s Quirinus Münster. The main theatre seats 443 people on steeply raked rows, ensuring clear sightlines to the stage. Below, a studio stage hosts smaller contemporary works and youth performances. A large acrylic painting, Salomé’s ‘Großer Seerosenteich’, hangs in the foyer, and the building’s lighting design changes with each production.