Why go
Built as a theatre from 1818 to 1821 under the name of the Schauspielhaus Berlin, later also known as the Theater am Gendarmenmarkt and Komödie, its usage changed to a concert hall after the Second World War and its name changed to its present one in 1994.
What to look for
- Karl Friedrich Schinkel's neoclassical theatre anchors the centre of Gendarmenmarkt and remains an active concert hall.
The full story
Königliches Schauspielhaus 1817–1870 The new hall was designed by Karl Friedrich Schinkel between 1818 and 1821. 1821–1870 The new Königliches Schauspielhaus was inaugurated on June 18, 1821 with the acclaimed premiere of Carl Maria von Weber's opera Der Freischütz. Other works that have premiered at the theatre include Undine by E. During the 1848 Revolution its main auditorium housed the Prussian National Assembly for several weeks in September, with the Gendarmenmarkt a major arena of political events. Preußisches Staatstheater 1870–1944 Notable premieres at the theatre during this period included Penthesilea by Heinrich von Kleist in 1876, and The Assumption of Hannele by Gerhart Hauptmann in 1893. After World War I the Schauspielhaus reopened under the name of Preußisches Staatstheater Berlin in October 1919.
Useful to know
- Check the current performance or guided-visit programme; ordinary daytime interior access may not be available.
- Use the exterior and surrounding square as the fallback when no event or tour fits your date.