The Hessisches Staatstheater Wiesbaden ('Hessian State Theatre Wiesbaden') is a German theatre located in

Wiesbaden Wiesbaden () is a city in central western Germany and the capital of the state of Hesse. , it had 290,955 inhabitants, plus approximately 21,000 United States citizens (mostly associated with the United States Army). The Wiesbaden urban area ...

, in the German state

Hesse Hesse (, , ) or Hessia (, ; german: Hessen ), officially the State of Hessen (german: links=no, Land Hessen), is a state in Germany. Its capital city is Wiesbaden, and the largest urban area is Frankfurt. Two other major historic cities are Dar ...

. The company produces

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a libr ...

play Play most commonly refers to: * Play (activity), an activity done for enjoyment * Play (theatre), a work of drama Play may refer also to: Computers and technology * Google Play, a digital content service * Play Framework, a Java framework * P ...

ballet Ballet () is a type of performance dance that originated during the Italian Renaissance in the fifteenth century and later developed into a concert dance form in France and Russia. It has since become a widespread and highly technical form of ...

s, musicals and

concert A concert is a live music performance in front of an audience. The performance may be by a single musician, sometimes then called a recital, or by a musical ensemble, such as an orchestra, choir, or band. Concerts are held in a wide variet ...

s on four stages. Known also as the Staatstheater Wiesbaden or ''Theater Wiesbaden'', its orchestra is the Hessisches Staatsorchester. The building was inaugurated in 1894. The theatre is the host for the annual festival

Internationale Maifestspiele Wiesbaden The Internationale Maifestspiele Wiesbaden (International May Festival, IMF) is a theater festival in Wiesbaden, Germany. Established in the late 19th century after the Bayreuth Festival, the festival is one of the most distinguished internationa ...

, established in 1896 after the Bayreuth Festival.

History

The building of the theatre was initiated and substantially supported by the German emperor William II who regularly visited the spa in Wiesbaden. A team of architects from

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

Ferdinand Fellner Ferdinand Fellner (19 April 1847 – 22 March 1916) was an Austrian architect. Biography Fellner joined his ailing father's architecture firm at the age of nineteen. After his death he founded the architecture studio Fellner & Helmer together w ...

and

Hermann Helmer Hermann Gottlieb Helmer (13 July 1849 – 2 April 1919) was a German architect who mainly worked in Austria. Biography After completing an apprenticeship as a bricklayer, and some further education he joined the architecture firm of Ferdinand ...

, won the competition. They constructed the building from 1892 to 1894 in Baroque Revival style, following models in

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and List of cities in the Czech Republic, largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 milli ...

and Zurich. The inauguration was on 16 October 1894 in the presence of the emperor. The

Foyer A lobby is a room in a building used for entry from the outside. Sometimes referred to as a foyer, reception area or an entrance hall, it is often a large room or complex of rooms (in a theatre, opera house, concert hall, showroom, cinema, etc. ...

was built in 1902 by architect . It serves three stages. After

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, the theatre was renamed "Preußisches Staatstheater" (Prussian State Theatre). Since 1932, the city of Wiesbaden was responsible for the theatre; therefore it was renamed "Nassauisches Landestheater" (Theater of the Province Nassau). Hessisches Staatstheater Tympanum

The building was seriously damaged in

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 opposing ...

by a bomb on 3 February 1945. The front was partially restored and the ceiling of the hall was decorated with a contemporary painting. In 1946, the State of Hesse took over the operation of the theatre. In 1947, it was re-opened as the "Großhessisches Staatstheater" (State Theater of Great Hesse), later "Hessisches Staatstheater Wiesbaden". From 1975 to 1978, the auditorium was restored according to the historic model. The technical equipment was modernized. A new tract was built, designed by Hardt-Waltherr Hämer, for rehearsal rooms, workshops and administration.

Performance facilities

The theatre has four stages, three of them in the historic house: * Großes Haus (Great House) with 1,041 seats. * Kleines Haus (Small House) with 328 seats. * Studio with 89 seats. * Wartburg, from 2003, is an additional small separate stage. The staff consist of about 600 people. Annually more than 25 new operas, plays and ballets have been produced. The theatre is especially dedicated to a young audience, collaborating with schools for "Schultheatertage". A professional ensemble, "Junges Staatstheater" (Young State Theater) is dedicated to children's and youth theater. In addition to the annual Internationale Maifestspiele in May, since 2004 a biennial festival "Neue Stücke aus Europa" (New European Plays) is organized in collaboration with the Staatstheater Mainz, presenting in ten days new plays in the original language with simultaneous translation. The current ''Intendant'' of the company is Uwe-Eric Laufenberg, since 2014. He is scheduled to stand down from the post at the end of the 2023–2024 season. The most recent ''Generalmusikdirektor'' of the company is Patrick Lange, who had begun in the post in 2017. In September 2021, Lange requested to be released from his Wiesbaden contract, ahead of the originally scheduled 2022–2023 season conclusion.

Artistic directors

* Georg von Hülsen-Haeseler (1893–1903) * Kurt von Munzenbechers (1903–1918) *

Carl Hagemann Carl Hagemann (April 9, 1867, in Essen – November 20, 1940, in Frankfurt am Main) was a German chemist, industrial manager and one of the most important German art collectors and patrons in the first half of the 20th century. Life Hageman ...

(1920–1927 *

Paul Bekker Max Paul Eugen Bekker (11 September 1882 – 7 March 1937) was a German music critic and author. Described as having "brilliant style and ..extensive theoretical and practical knowledge," Bekker was chief music critic for both the '' Frankfu ...

(1927–1932 ) * Friedrich Schramm (1953–1962) *

Claus Helmut Drese Claus Helmut Drese (25 December 1922, in Aachen – 10 February 2011, in Horgen, Switzerland) was a German opera and theatre administrator, and author. Early career Drese began his career as a dramaturg at the ''Marburger Schauspielhaus'' in ...

(1962–1968) * (1968–1975) * Peter Ebert (1975–1078) * Christoph Groszer (1978–1986) *

Claus Leininger Claus Leininger (17 January 1931 – 22 February 2005) was a German stage director in theatre and opera, and an intendant (general manager). He shaped the artistic profile of the Musiktheater im Revier in Gelsenkirchen, nicknamed the Ruhr- Scala ...

(1986–1994) * (1994–1996) * Achim Thorwald (1996–2002) * (2002–2014) * Uwe Eric Laufenberg (2014–present)

Orchestras and conductors

Städtisches Cur- und Sinfonieorchester

Wiesbaden's first major orchestra was in 1873 the "Städtisches Cur- und Sinfonieorchester" (Communal Spa and Symphony Orchestra). Its conductor from 1874 to 1905, Louis Lüstner, established besides entertaining music for the spa audience twelve symphony concerts a year. During this period Johannes Brahms,

Clara Schumann Clara Josephine Schumann (; née Wieck; 13 September 1819 – 20 May 1896) was a German pianist, composer, and piano teacher. Regarded as one of the most distinguished pianists of the Romantic era, she exerted her influence over the course of a ...

Joseph Joachim Joseph Joachim (28 June 1831 – 15 August 1907) was a Hungarian violinist, conductor, composer and teacher who made an international career, based in Hanover and Berlin. A close collaborator of Johannes Brahms, he is widely regarded as one of t ...

, Camille Saint-Saëns and Pablo de Sarasate appeared in concert, among others. Felix Mottl was a regular guest conductor from 1894. The number of players was raised from 56 to 65 in 1905 to 1911. From 1912

Carl Schuricht Carl Adolph Schuricht (; 3 July 18807 January 1967) was a German conductor. Life and career Schuricht was born in Danzig (Gdańsk), German Empire; his father's family had been respected organ-builders. His mother, Amanda Wusinowska, a widow soo ...

was the conductor, appointed Generalmusikdirektor (GMD) 1921. Regular guest conductors during his era, which lasted until 1944, included

Fritz Busch Fritz Busch (13 March 1890 – 14 September 1951) was a German conductor. Busch was born in Siegen, Westphalia, to a musical family, and studied at the Cologne Conservatory. After army service in the First World War, he was appointed to senior p ...

Felix Weingartner Paul Felix Weingartner, Edler von Münzberg (2 June 1863 – 7 May 1942) was an Austrian conductor, composer and pianist. Life and career Weingartner was born in Zara, Dalmatia, Austria-Hungary (now Zadar, Croatia), to Austrian parents. ...

Bruno Walter Bruno Walter (born Bruno Schlesinger, September 15, 1876February 17, 1962) was a German-born conductor, pianist and composer. Born in Berlin, he escaped Nazi Germany in 1933, was naturalised as a French citizen in 1938, and settled in the U ...

and Richard Strauss.

Staatskapelle

The second orchestra "Staatskapelle", was founded in 1894, with the new opera house, to play exclusively opera and ballet. Conductors included: * 1906–

Artur Rother Artur Martin Rother (12 October 188522 September 1972) was a German conductor who worked mainly in the opera house. He was born in Stettin, Pomerania (now Szczecin, Poland). His father was an organist and music teacher. He studied under Hugo Ka ...

* 1924–1927

Otto Klemperer Otto Nossan Klemperer (14 May 18856 July 1973) was a 20th-century conductor and composer, originally based in Germany, and then the US, Hungary and finally Britain. His early career was in opera houses, but he was later better known as a concer ...

* 1932– Heinrich Hollreiser * 1933–1936 Karl Elmendorff Guest conductors included

Thomas Beecham Sir Thomas Beecham, 2nd Baronet, Order of the Companions of Honour, CH (29 April 18798 March 1961) was an English conductor and impresario best known for his association with the London Philharmonic Orchestra, London Philharmonic and the Roya ...

Leo Blech Leo Blech (21 April 1871 – 25 August 1958) was a German opera composer and conductor who is perhaps most famous for his work at the Königliches Opernhaus (later the Berlin State Opera / Staatsoper Unter den Linden) from 1906 to 1937, and late ...

and Fritz Busch. Richard Strauss conducted opera almost annually.

Hessisches Staatsorchester

After the war, a fusion of the two orchestras under the new name ''Hessisches Staatsorchester'' was initiated and finalized by

Wolfgang Sawallisch Wolfgang Sawallisch (26 August 1923 – 22 February 2013) was a German conductor and pianist. Biography Wolfgang Sawallisch was born in Munich, the son of Maria and Wilhelm Sawallisch. His father was director of the Hamburg-Bremer-Feuerversich ...

at the end of the 1950s. *

Franz-Paul Decker Franz-Paul Decker (June 26, 1923 – May 19, 2014) was a German-born conductor. Life Decker was born in Cologne, Germany, where he studied at the Hochschule für Musik with Philip Jarnach and Eugen Papst. He made his conducting debut at the ...

(1950–1956) *

(1958–1960) * Siegfried Köhler (1973–1988) *

Ulf Schirmer Ulf Schirmer (born 1959) is a German conductor and opera house administrator. Born in Eschenhausen, Lower Saxony, Schirmer studied at the Bremen Conservatory, and also at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater Hamburg, with György Ligeti, Christ ...

(1988–1991) *

Oleg Caetani Oleg Caetani (born 1956) is an Italian conductor. Life and career Born in Lausanne, Caetani studied with Nadia Boulanger. At the Conservatory of Santa Cecilia in Rome, he studied conducting with Franco Ferrara and composition with Irma Ravinale ...

(1992–1995) *

Jonathan Nott Jonathan Nott (born 25 December 1962, in Solihull, England) is an English conductor. Biography The son of a priest at Worcester Cathedral, Nott was a music student and choral scholar at St John's College, Cambridge, and also studied singing a ...

(1995–1996) * Joachim Arnold (1996–1997) *

Toshiyuki Kamioka Toshiyuki Kamioka is a Japanese conductor and pianist, who lives and works predominantly in Germany since 1984. Career Born in Tokyo, Toshiyuki Kamioka studied from 1979 to 1983 conducting, composition, piano and violin at the Tokyo National ...

(1996–2004) * Marc Piollet (2004–2012) *

Zsolt Hamar Zsolt Hamar (born 1968 in Budapest) is a Hungarian conductor. History Hamar started to play the piano at the age of six and later studied composition at the Béla Bartók Conservatoire. He followed university studies at the Franz Liszt Academy of ...

(2012–2017) * Patrick Lange (2017–present)

References

Other sources

* Rudolf Cyperrek, Otto Laux, Hans-Peter Scholz: ''Geschichte eines Theatergebäudes 1860–1978''. Hessisches Staatstheater, Wiesbaden 1978. * Peter Schabe: ''Hessisches Staatstheater Wiesbaden''. Verlag Schnell & Steiner, München 1988 (Kunstführer; Bd. 1712). * ''Das neue kgl. Theater in Wiesbaden''. In: ''Zeitschrift des österreichischen Ingenieur- und Architekten-Vereins''. Jg. 51 (1899), Nr. 1, , S. 1–4.

External links

Hessisches Staatstheater Wiesbaden
Official website
Jugendclubtheater
website {{Authority control German opera companies Theatre companies in Germany Buildings and structures in Wiesbaden Culture in Wiesbaden Ballet venues Tourist attractions in Wiesbaden Music venues completed in 1894 Theatres completed in 1894 Fellner & Helmer buildings 1894 establishments in Germany