The Ohnsorg-Theater in

Hamburg (male), (female) en, Hamburger(s), Hamburgian(s) , timezone1 = Central (CET) , utc_offset1 = +1 , timezone1_DST = Central (CEST) , utc_offset1_DST = +2 , postal ...

, Germany, is a stage for plays run after the British system of repertory theatre with up to six produced plays per season. Plays are exclusively performed in

low German : : : : : (70,000) (30,000) (8,000) , familycolor = Indo-European , fam2 = Germanic , fam3 = West Germanic , fam4 = North Sea Germanic , ancestor = Old Saxon , ancestor2 = Middle L ...

(''Platt''). They play a major role in spreading the knowledge and, in recent times, renewed appreciation of this

minority language A minority language is a language spoken by a minority of the population of a territory. Such people are termed linguistic minorities or language minorities. With a total number of 196 sovereign states recognized internationally (as of 2019) and ...

. Exceptions played in

standard German Standard High German (SHG), less precisely Standard German or High German (not to be confused with High German dialects, more precisely Upper German dialects) (german: Standardhochdeutsch, , or, in Switzerland, ), is the standardized variety ...

(''Hochdeutsch'') are only made for television broadcasts. These broadcasts, by the regional

Norddeutscher Rundfunk Norddeutscher Rundfunk (NDR; ''Northern German Broadcasting'') is a public broadcasting, public radio and television broadcaster, based in Hamburg. In addition to the city-state of Hamburg, NDR broadcasts for the German states of Lower Saxony, M ...

(NDR) and the nationwide ARD have made the theatre and its former main star

Heidi Kabel Heidi Bertha Auguste Kabel (; 27 August 1914 – 15 June 2010) was a German actress and musician. Most of her stage roles were performed at the Ohnsorg-Theater in Hamburg, many of them in Low German. She became famous in Germany as many of the pr ...

popular across Germany and beyond. The theatre is known for comedies, the majority of them set in the typical environment of Northern German farmers, fishermen and merchants. The theatre also performs serious works of traditional literature and musical theatre as well as adaptations in ''Platt'' of international material, such as the stage version of Stephen King's '' Misery'' and original plays such as Tennessee Williams's ''

Cat on a Hot Tin Roof ''Cat on a Hot Tin Roof'' is a three-act play written by Tennessee Williams. An adaptation of his 1952 short story "Three Players of a Summer Game", the play was written by him between 1953 and 1955. One of Williams's more famous works and his p ...

'', Robert Thomas's ''

8 Women ''8 Women'' (french: 8 femmes) is a 2002 dark comedy musical film written and directed by François Ozon. Based on the 1958 play by Robert Thomas, it features an ensemble cast of high-profile French actresses that includes Catherine Deneuve, Is ...

'', Willy Russell's ''

Shirley Valentine ''Shirley Valentine'' is a one-character play by Willy Russell. Taking the form of a monologue by a middle-aged, working class Liverpool housewife, it focuses on her life before and after a transforming holiday abroad. Plot Wondering what has ...

'', Lawrence Roman's ''Alone Together'' and Shakespeare's ''

A Midsummer Night's Dream ''A Midsummer Night's Dream'' is a comedy written by William Shakespeare 1595 or 1596. The play is set in Athens, and consists of several subplots that revolve around the marriage of Theseus and Hippolyta. One subplot involves a conflict amon ...

''.Gerd Spiekermann: ''100 Jahre Ohnsorg Theater'', Die Hanse – Sabine Groenewold Verlage, Hamburg 2002,

History

The theatre was founded by

Richard Ohnsorg Richard is a male given name. It originates, via Old French, from Old Frankish and is a compound of the words descending from Proto-Germanic ''*rīk-'' 'ruler, leader, king' and ''*hardu-'' 'strong, brave, hardy', and it therefore means 'strong ...

(1876–1947) in 1902 as ''Dramatische Gesellschaft Hamburg'', with the stated purpose of providing a stage on which plays in ''Platt'' could be performed. This was often not possible in other theatres, since ''Platt'' was generally considered to be a sign of low social rank and rather boorish, despite the fact that ''Platt'' was also spoken in the wealthy and educated circles of Hamburg's merchants and shipowners.Peter Schmachthagen: ''Sprechen Sie Hamburgisch'' - Vol. II, Axel Springer Verlag/Hamburger Abendblatt, Hamburg 2010, Plays, some originally written in ''Platt'', others translated from High German and other languages, were performed in cramped circumstances and various locations. In 1920, the theatre was renamed to ''Niederdeutsche Bühne Hamburg''. In 1936, the company moved into the former ''Kleine Lustspielhaus'' on the

Große Bleichen Große Bleichen (pl. in German, also ''Die Großen Bleichen'') are an upmarket shopping street in the Neustadt quarter of Hamburg, Germany. Location Große Bleichen are located in the Passagenviertel (passage quarter), a busy shopping district ...

. The

Nazi regime Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

was sympathetic to the company's aim to stimulate local culture; the brand comedy delivered by Ohnsorg and his company was popular. After the war, the theatre was renamed ''Richard Ohnsorg-Theater'' in 1946. Since 1954, its productions have been aired by NDR. Especially during the 1960s and 1970s, the theatre was popular due to its star

who played until her retirement in 1997. The actor

Folker Bohnet Folker Bohnet (7 August 19376 October 2020) was a German actor, theatre director and playwright. He played in the 1959 film '' Die Brücke'' directed by Bernhard Wicki while still a student in Berlin. Later, he focused on comedy for the stage, as ...

directed 17 productions, including some plays he had co-authored. The theatre moved into a new larger playhouse in 2011, which was built in the listed ''Bieberhaus'' close to

Deutsches Schauspielhaus The Deutsches Schauspielhaus is a theatre in the St. Georg quarter of the city of Hamburg, Germany. It was established in 1901 by the renowned stage actress Franziska Ellmenreich. Theatre managers Notable actors Marco Albrecht, Ingrid ...

and

Hamburg Hauptbahnhof Hamburg Hauptbahnhof (abbrev. ''Hamburg Hbf'') is the main railway station of the city of Hamburg, Germany. Opened in 1906 to replace four separate terminal stations, today Hamburg Hauptbahnhof is operated by DB Station&Service AG. With an avera ...

. Part of the square in front of the theatre was named after Kabel right before the theatre moved, and a monument in her honour was erected next to the theatre's entrance.

References

External links

* {{coord, 53, 33, 09, N, 9, 59, 21, E, region:DE-HH_type:landmark_source:kolossus-dewiki, display=title Theatres in Hamburg Buildings and structures in Hamburg-Mitte Tourist attractions in Hamburg 1902 establishments in Germany