Scala cultural playhouse

The Scala Kulturspielhaus is a cabaret and event location in Wesel on the Lower Rhine . It uses the premises of a previous cinema for various cultural events.

Location and building

The Scala Kulturspielhaus is located in downtown Wesel on Wilhelmstrasse , which connects the Berliner Tor with Wesel train station . At Berliner-Tor-Platz, the drivable Wilhelmstrasse merges into the central pedestrian zone in the city center.

The premises extend over two floors of the Wilhelmstrasse 8-10 building. The 29 m² stage is on the ground floor of the former cinema and in front of it is a 231 m² auditorium. There is a balcony on the first floor that can be used as an additional auditorium if necessary. Overall, the premises offer space for around 400 visitors.

history

In the place of today's Kulturspielhaus there used to be a cinema, which, like today's Kulturspielhaus, was called "Scala". It went back to a cinema set up on Schermbecker Landstrasse in 1948. On April 15, 1951, the cinema opened under the name Scala Lichtspiele in the premises on Wilhelmstrasse and was then one of three Wesel cinemas. It worked with local schools until the 1960s and showed films as part of the lessons as a supplement to the normal program. From the 1960s onwards, Sunday mornings established themselves as a time for special screenings. This included films with a special cultural claim as well as films in Greek and Turkish. In 1986 the cinema was taken over by the operator of another cinema in Wesel and was last named Comet-Scala-Filmtheater . On December 30, 2005, the cinema on Wilhelmstrasse was closed and the premises were used provisionally for various purposes in the following years.

Through an initiative, alternative venues for culture and entertainment were sought in the city and in this context a shop on Friedenstrasse was temporarily converted into a meeting place and party. In September 2013, the former Scala cinema was presented as a possible cultural event location as part of the state project "Off to the middle - the City-Offensive NRW" by hosting a poetry slam . Further events followed at the end of 2013 and on February 1, 2014 the permanent conversion to the Scala Kulturspielhaus followed. A headlight with intersecting light in a red and white color combination was chosen as the logo.

Events

Before the Scala became a permanent establishment in early 2014, it was intended for up to 24 cultural events per year. It should also be rented out for events such as company parties, workshops and conferences. The number of cultural events offered has quickly increased significantly. For the two months of November and December 2016 alone, the program comprised over 30 events. The cabaret and cultural events include concerts , comedy , theater performances , film screenings, poetry slams , lectures and readings . Occasionally, sporting events are also held in the former cinema. New series of events were regularly introduced, including, for example, a monthly evening with an open stage for artists of all forms of performance.

In 2016, Heinz Gröning , Chris Tall , Ingmar Stadelmann , Kalle Pohl , York Hovest , the Connemara Stone Company , Holger Müller , the Hoepner brothers , Flash Forward and Bastian Bielendorfer performed at Scala.