The ''Volkstheater Millowitsch'', also known as the ''Millowitsch-Theater'', was a medium-sized

theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perform ...

Cologne Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western States of Germany, state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the List of cities in Germany by population, fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 m ...

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 betwe ...

where popular, low-brow

comedies Comedy is a genre of fiction that consists of discourses or works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. The term o ...

were performed.

History

The Millowitsch family had been active in theatre before ownership of this building with a tradition dating back to 1792. With the onset of the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

and the ensuing inflation,

Peter Millowitsch Peter Millowitsch is a German film and television actor. He is the director of the Volkstheater Millowitsch which he took over in 1999 following the death of his father Willy Millowitsch Willy Millowitsch (, ; 8 January 1909 – 20 Septemb ...

was forced to abandon the family’s old theatre and tour

and the surrounding area, until in 1936 they finally moved into the new theatre in ''Aachener Straße''. In 1940

Willy Millowitsch Willy Millowitsch (, ; 8 January 1909 – 20 September 1999) was a German stage and TV actor and the director of the ''Volkstheater Millowitsch'' in Cologne. Early life Millowitsch was born in Cologne, Rhine Province. His parents were Peter ...

took charge of the theatre. During

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 vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

it was damaged, but not too severely, so on September 16, 1945, the theatre was reopened. In the time from 1945–1949 there were daily performances in the theatre, but afterwards the attendance dropped and Millowitsch had to rent out the theatre sometimes. Fortunately, the building doubled as a

cinema Cinema may refer to: Film * Cinematography, the art of motion-picture photography * Film or movie, a series of still images that create the illusion of a moving image ** Film industry, the technological and commercial institutions of filmmaking * ...

, so he could still make money with it. The first live broadcast of a theatrical performance in front of a real audience on German television took place in this theatre. On October 27, 1953

’s Kölsch dialect play ''

Der Etappenhas Der or DER may refer to: Places * Darkənd, Azerbaijan * Dearborn (Amtrak station) (station code), in Michigan, US * Der (Sumer), an ancient city located in modern-day Iraq * d'Entrecasteaux Ridge, an oceanic ridge in the south-west Pacific O ...

'' was broadcast on the Western regional channel WDR. It was immensely successful and just six weeks later was broadcast again, live, from the ''Millowitsch-Theater''. Over the course of the years, over one hundred performances from the ''Volkstheater Millowitsch'' were shown on television. The television plays spawned interest in theatre and the audiences gradually grew and by the 1960s a steady flow of people were teeming in to see Millowitsch’s plays firsthand. He renovated the building in 1967 and the Volkstheater once again became a focal point of local culture. Changing his original concept, Millowitsch turned the theatre from a house just for plays into a venue for local performances of all kinds. Many young dialect artists started their careers there, including the now famous singing groups

Bläck Fööss The Bläck Fööss ( Ripuarian ''De Bläck Fööss'') are a music group from Cologne, Germany, started in 1970. Name of the band The band's name in Kölsch, a local dialect of Ripuarian, in which the group predominantly sings, means barefoo ...

and

Höhner De Höhner ( Kölsch for "The Chickens", , ) is a band from Cologne, Germany. They sing in the local dialect of Cologne, Kölsch. The group was founded in 1972 by Peter Werner and Janus Fröhlich. During their first year, the band wore chicken c ...

. In 1998 only few months before

’s death in 1999, his son

took over the running of the establishment.

Location

The ''Millowitsch-Theater'' is located at ''Aachener Straße'' 5, near the Hahnentor and ''Rudolfplatz'' in the centre of

, just by the

tram A tram (called a streetcar or trolley in North America) is a rail vehicle that travels on tramway tracks on public urban streets; some include segments on segregated right-of-way. The tramlines or networks operated as public transport are ...

line. It is a medium-sized theatre that can seat up to 383 people. Ticket prices usually range from €19 – €24.

References

External links

* {{Authority control Theatres in Cologne