Ballenstedt Castle Theater

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Ballenstedt Palace Theater (2009)

The Schlosstheater Ballenstedt is a historic theater building in the small town of Ballenstedt in the Harz district in Saxony-Anhalt . It is a listed building.

Location and building description

Location of the castle theater (right) at Ballenstedt Castle
The auditorium (2018)

The Ballenstedt Castle Theater is part of the ensemble of buildings in Ballenstedt Castle . It is located at the end of Schlossallee on the left in front of the castle gate with the address Schlossplatz 1.

The simple, essentially rectangular, two-storey structure is around 30 meters long and 20 meters wide. Two gables protruding on the long sides lead to a cross-shaped arrangement of gable roofs . In the design of its entrance gable, the building erected in the classical period already anticipates the later round arch style in a certain way .

The 349-seat auditorium has two galleries .

history

After moving his residence from Bernburg to Ballenstedt in 1765, Friedrich Albrecht von Anhalt-Bernburg had a small court theater built here. The foundation stone was laid in 1787 and the opening took place on June 8, 1788. This makes it one of the oldest stages in Germany and the oldest that is still in use in Saxony-Anhalt. The architect of the building is unknown.

In 1887, on the initiative of Princess Pauline at court, a theater company was founded, and the 26-year-old court organist and court conductor Carl Christian Agthe also worked at the house until his death in 1797 and contributed a few operas. After a break from 1806 to 1810, the heyday of the theater began in the 19th century with guest performances by famous theater companies such as those of Joseph Seconda and Friedrich Wilhelm Bossann . In 1846 Albert Lortzing conducted his opera “ Undine ”, in 1847/48 Joseph Tichatschek sang the role of Tannhäuser and in 1852 Franz Liszt conducted his own and contemporary works by Richard Wagner and Hector Berlioz . After the death of Alexander Carl , the last Duke of Anhalt-Bernburg, the theater was closed in 1864.

In 1889 a theater committee made it possible for citizens of Ballenstedt to continue operating. The court opera and court theater in Dessau played in Ballenstedt until 1914. In 1925 Eduard von Winterstein took over directing duties. From 1933 to 1945 the game was almost completely stopped.

After the end of the Second World War , an ensemble was created that lasted until the theater was reorganized in 1949. Then the house became a guest venue again, initially for the Quedlinburg City Theater and from 1963 the Halberstadt Volkstheater, both of which merged in 1992 to form the North Harz City Theater , with which a cooperation agreement was concluded in 1996.

use

After the termination of the contract with the Nordharzer Städtebundtheater, the Ballenstedter Schlosstheater is operated by the city of Ballenstedt. There are various types of events, ranging from theater performances to readings, lectures, cabaret and song evenings to concerts, the latter covering the spectrum from folk music to rock.

literature

  • Tourist-Information Ballenstedt (ed.): The castle theater . Flyer, (online)

Web links

Commons : Schlosstheater Ballenstedt  - Collection of pictures

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ List of cultural monuments in Ballenstedt (registration number 094 50334)
  2. ↑ A gem in Anhalt. In: Ballenstedter Stadtbote 07/18, p. 16. Retrieved on October 4, 2018 .
  3. ↑ Events at the Castle Theater. Retrieved October 5, 2018 .

Coordinates: 51 ° 43 ′ 7 ″  N , 11 ° 13 ′ 12 ″  E