City Theater Klagenfurt
The Stadttheater Klagenfurt is a municipal theater of the city of Klagenfurt am Wörthersee in Austria .
history
The first theater was built between 1605 and 1620 as a ballroom for the aristocracy and served their social entertainment. Over time, there was an increasing number of Italian guest performances, which on the journey from Venice to Vienna liked to stop in Klagenfurt. The Ballhaus thus integrated more and more into the Austrian theater scene of the 17th and 18th centuries and was gradually converted into a theater house. The actual opening as a theater took place in 1737. The theater was under the jurisdiction of the Carinthian states . Towards the end of the 18th century, the theater was also gradually opened to intellectuals, the military and civil servants. In 1811 the initially wooden theater building was completely rebuilt from stone and is known as the "Old Theater".
In 1908 the groundbreaking for the “New Theater” took place, as the old one was in a dilapidated condition. On September 22nd, 1910, the new theater was opened as the Jubilee City Theater on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the reign of Emperor Franz Joseph I. The theater was built by the Viennese architects Büro Fellner & Helmer as an almost identical copy of the city theaters in Gießen and Gablonz , which had been built in 1906 and 1907.
Klagenfurt
Building
Today's theater was built in a classicist style with a clear Art Nouveau influence - especially inside.
Art Nouveau entrance
Ceiling of the auditorium
Art Nouveau candelabra
Inscriptions on the front
The memorial plaque and the name of the theater are on the front and main entrance side:
- The memorial plaque is located under the roof ridge, as part of the decorative balustrade . It is framed protruding with a pedestal, two stylized columns and covered by an implied, curved roof gable, on which an allegorical grimace head is hung. In this frame is the board with the following text:
IN THE 60TH YEAR OF GOVERNMENT
• FRANZ JOSEF 1 •
• ESTABLISHED •
- Below the roof overhang is the inscription on the front:
• JVBILAVMS-STADT-THEATER •
- To the left of the inscription is the Carinthian coat of arms and to the right of it the Klagenfurt city coat of arms; both are rectangular framed by Schmmuckgirlanden, in each case by a stylized Herzoghut crowned. The year numbers are below the garland rectangle: on the left " 1908 " and on the right " 1910 ".
Conversions and extensions in the 20th century
In the 1960s, further expansions were made, including a. the number of standing places was reduced and an extension for the stage was built. Herbert Wochinz was the artistic director from 1968 to 1992 . From 1996 to 1998 the city theater was rebuilt according to plans by Günther Domenig and a modern wing was added to the rear.
Theater history
The Pflegerl era
Dietmar Pflegerl was the artistic director from 1992 to 2007 . His directorship (from 1992 until his death in 2007) is seen as an important time for the Klagenfurt City Theater. Pflegerl changed the style of the three-branch theater with socially critical plays and productions. He brought in the actors Otto Schenk , Wolfgang Böck , Karl Merkatz and Fritz Karl , the musical stars Uwe Kröger and Rafi Weinstock, the opera singers Albert Dohmen , Danilo Rigosa , Maria Candidda and Sebastian Holecek and the conductors Alex Joel (brother of the well-known musician Billy Joel ) , Michael Güttler and Guido Mancusi at the house. As directors, u. a. Martin Kušej , Leonard Prinsloo , Wolfgang Böck and Michael Sturminger .
Pflegerl engaged the Carinthian author Peter Turrini several times for acting commissioned works, which were premiered in Klagenfurt. In addition, under Pflegerl's leadership, the Klagenfurt City Theater became a springboard for up-and-coming talents, e. B. for the bass baritone Albert Dohmen . The Kärntner Symphonie-Orchester, KSO for short, grew considerably during the Pflegerl era under the chief conductor Guido Mancusi (2001 to 2007). Under Pflegerl's directorship, the theater was usually occupied by over 90%.
The post-Pflegerl era
In 2007 Josef Ernst Köpplinger was appointed artistic director of the Klagenfurt City Theater. He held this position from 2007 to 2012. There he initiated the MUT competition for musical entertainment theater in 2010. Köpplinger's artistic directorship also marked the 100th anniversary of the Landestheater Klagenfurt with the premiere of the previously lost Cherubini opera Koukourgi in the 2010/11 season, which was broadcast live by 3sat .
In 2012 Florian Scholz became artistic director. In June 2019 it was announced that Florian Scholz was to leave the theater early at the end of the 2019/20 season and move to Theater Bern. His contract would have run until 2020/21. In November 2019, the German opera director Aron Stiehl was presented as the new director of the Klagenfurt City Theater.
Nestroy Theater Prize
The Stadttheater Klagenfurt was able to win Nestroy theater prizes in various categories in 2003, 2006, 2011 and 2018 .
In 2018 the Stadttheater Klagenfurt was awarded the Nestroy Theater Prize for the best federal state performance . The award-winning play is the tragedy Ivanov , which was performed in cooperation with the United Theaters of Bozen .
Web links
- Stadttheater Klagenfurt - Official website
Individual evidence
- ↑ Florian Scholz leaves the city theater. Retrieved June 20, 2019 .
- ^ Aron Stiehl new city theater director. In: ORF.at . November 20, 2019, accessed November 21, 2019 .
Coordinates: 46 ° 37 ′ 36.9 ″ N , 14 ° 18 ′ 18.7 ″ E