Apollo Theater (Vienna)
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The Apollo-Theater was a theater and variety institution in the Mariahilf district of Vienna , which gained importance as the premier of a series of operettas by Ralph Benatzky and, since 1929, as a cinema .
history
The Palais Kaunitz originally stood on the site of the Apollo establishment . In 1903 the land was bought by the Apollo construction company , which was owned by the lawyer Ludwig Herz. In January 1903, Herz applied for a building permit for a residential and commercial building as well as an entertainment establishment, which he received in the current year.
In 1904 the building complex planned by Eduard Prandl , located on Gumpendorfer Strasse on the corner of Kaunitzgasse in the 6th district, Mariahilf , was completed. In addition to a hotel and three apartment buildings, it also included the Apollo Theater. The house celebrated its opening on September 1, 1904, one day later Ludwig Herz committed suicide because of personal financial difficulties arising from building speculation.
Under director Ben Tieber (1867–1925) - he was the owner from 1905 - the Apollo became the most popular variety theater in Vienna in the following years , soon overtaking its biggest competitor, the Ronacher establishment - not least due to its specialization in nudities . The Folies Bergère ensemble and the exotic Mata Hari performed in the Apollo.
Since hardly any foreign artists could be hired after the First World War , the decline of the variety show began. In 1923, Tieber was therefore granted permission to run the Apollo as a musical hall. However, he soon resigned for health reasons. The following leaders led the theater into an ever greater deficit. After Tieber's death in 1925, his underage children inherited the Apollo. Their representative, the lawyer Richard Preßburger, tried to get an extended license in 1928, but no reaction is known, so the house was closed in 1928. On December 22nd, 1928, Kiba, owned by the City of Vienna (until 1999), bought the theater and had it converted into the Apollo cinema in 1929 by the architect Carl Witzmann , which is still in operation today.
World premieres (selection)
- Bruno Granichstaedten : Lolotte (July 30, 1910)
- Hermann Dostal : The Flying Rittmeister (October 5, 1912)
- Ralph Benatzky : Prince's spring awakening! (March 16, 1914)
- Bruno Granichstaedten: Love of Waltz (February 16, 1918)
- Ralph Benatzky: The Dancing Mask (December 1, 1918)
- Ralph Benatzky: Apaches (December 20, 1920)
- Bruno Granichstaedten: Indian Nights (November 25, 1921)
literature
- Apollotheater in the Vienna History Wiki of the City of Vienna
- Sabine Claudia Tanner: From Varieté to Cinema. The building history of the Viennese “Apollo” variety from 1903 to 1929 . In: Wiener Geschichtsblätter , Volume 62.3.2007, ISSN 0043-5317 . Association for the History of the City of Vienna, Vienna 2007, pp. 1–27.
- Kevin Clarke , Günter Barton (spokesman): The diaries of Dr. Ralph Benatzky. Between Berlin and Hollywood. Berlin - Vienna - New York - Hollywood 1924–1946 . (Audio book, 1 CD, 1 booklet). Duo-phon Records, Berlin 2006, ISBN 978-3-937127-11-8 .
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b Local report. (...) The opening of the Apollo Theater. In: Neue Freie Presse , Morgenblatt, No. 14376/1904, September 2, 1904, p. 9 f. (Online at ANNO ).
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↑ Local report. Suicide of the lawyer Dr. Ludwig Heart. In: Neue Freie Presse , Morgenblatt, No. 14378/1904, September 4, 1904, p. 11, bottom center. (Online at ANNO ). ,
Parte : Valerie Herz gives, bent in deepest pain, (...) Dr. Ludwig Herz (...). In: Neue Freie Presse , Morgenblatt, No. 14378/1904, September 4, 1904, p. 27, center right (online at ANNO ).
Coordinates: 48 ° 11 ′ 51 ″ N , 16 ° 21 ′ 14 ″ E