Großes Schauspielhaus
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The Großes Schauspielhaus (Great Theater) was a theatre in
Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitu ...
,
Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwee ...
, often described as an example of expressionist architecture, designed by
Hans Poelzig Hans Poelzig (30 April 1869 – 14 June 1936) was a German architect, painter and set designer. Life Poelzig was born in Berlin in 1869 to Countess Clara Henrietta Maria Poelzig while she was married to George Acland Ames, an Englishman. Uncert ...
for theatre impresario
Max Reinhardt Max Reinhardt (; born Maximilian Goldmann; 9 September 1873 – 30 October 1943) was an Austrian-born theatre and film director, intendant, and theatrical producer. With his innovative stage productions, he is regarded as one of the most pr ...
. The structure was originally a market built by architect
Friedrich Hitzig Georg Friedrich Heinrich Hitzig (8 November 1811, in Berlin – 11 October 1881, in Berlin) was a German architect, born into the Jewish Itzig family, converted to Lutheranism. He was a student of Karl Friedrich Schinkel. After his diploma in ...
, and it retained its external,
gable A gable is the generally triangular portion of a wall between the edges of intersecting roof pitches. The shape of the gable and how it is detailed depends on the structural system used, which reflects climate, material availability, and aest ...
d form. It then became the Zirkus Schumann, a
circus A circus is a company of performers who put on diverse entertainment shows that may include clowns, acrobats, trained animals, trapeze acts, musicians, dancers, hoopers, tightrope walkers, jugglers, magicians, ventriloquists, and unicyclis ...
arena. It was renovated by Poelzig and reopened in 1919, contained seating for 3500 people. Max Reinhardt wanted to attract a working-class audience. The large size allowed for people who could pay top prices for the best seats to support low-cost seats, in the back of the theater. Painted red, it was a cavernous,
dome A dome () is an architectural element similar to the hollow upper half of a sphere. There is significant overlap with the term cupola, which may also refer to a dome or a structure on top of a dome. The precise definition of a dome has been a m ...
d space and had no balconies, which contributed to its vastness. Its dome and the pillars were decorated with
Muqarnas Muqarnas ( ar, مقرنص; fa, مقرنس), also known in Iranian architecture as Ahoopāy ( fa, آهوپای) and in Iberian architecture as Mocárabe, is a form of ornamented vaulting in Islamic architecture. It is the archetypal form of I ...
, a honeycombed pendentive ornament, which resembled
stalactite A stalactite (, ; from the Greek 'stalaktos' ('dripping') via ''stalassein'' ('to drip') is a mineral formation that hangs from the ceiling of caves, hot springs, or man-made structures such as bridges and mines. Any material that is soluble ...
s. When illuminated, the ceiling's
lightbulb An electric light, lamp, or light bulb is an electrical component that produces light. It is the most common form of artificial lighting. Lamps usually have a base made of ceramic, metal, glass, or plastic, which secures the lamp in the ...
s formed patterns of celestial
constellation A constellation is an area on the celestial sphere in which a group of visible stars forms a perceived pattern or outline, typically representing an animal, mythological subject, or inanimate object. The origins of the earliest constellation ...
s, and the vaulted ceiling took on another concept, the night sky. In the lobby and elsewhere, Poelzig used coloured lightbulbs to create striking visual backdrops. Separate entrances were provided for the expensive and the cheap seats. The theatre also included a restaurant for the wealthy audience members, a cafeteria for the poorer audience members, and a bar. The performers and technicians enjoyed their own bar, a barber shop, ample dressing room space, and the modern stage equipment. The
Nazi Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in ...
s took over in 1933 and changed its name to Theatre of the People. They described the building as an example of Entartete Kunst and refurbished its interior by adding a hung ceiling to hide the stalactite forms. After
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
, it was used for variety shows under the name of Friedrichstadt-Palast until 1988, when it was condemned and demolished. There was a strong subsidence of the foundation and moulding of the supporting piles. The new Friedrichstadt-Palast has been erected on Friedrichstraße 107.


References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Grosses Schauspielhaus Theatres completed in 1919 Expressionist architecture Hans Poelzig buildings Modernist architecture in Germany Theatres in Berlin Buildings and structures demolished in 1988