From chanson to musical: wonderful evergreens, chansons and poems by the brilliant Berlin poet Robert Gilbert
From chanson to musical: wonderful evergreens, chansons & poems. An encounter with the brilliant Berlin poet Robert Gilbert - with "Chanson-Nette" Jeannette Urzendowsky, Henry Nandzik and the Ukrainian-Russian trio Scho. Gennady Desatnik on violin and guitar; Valeriy Khoryshman on accordion; Alexander Franz on double bass. Directed by Isabelle Gensior.
Image gallery
Chanson-Nette & Henry Nandzig on stage.
Trio Scho (Valeriy Khoryshman (Akkordeon), Gennadij Desatnik (Geige), Alexander Franz (Kontrabass) mit Chanson-Nette & Henry Nandzik.
Everyone knows his hits, but hardly anyone knows him: the Berlin chanson and cabaret poet Robert Gilbert (1899-1978).
“A friend, a good friend”, “It's so young when Spain's blossoms bloom”, “Oh my papa”, “That's only once, it'll never come again”, “Stempellied, song of the unemployed”, “Through Berlin the Spree is still flowing” – to this day his chansons and rhymes carry the sound of Berlin of the 20s, early 30s and post-war years out into the world.
Robert Gilbert wrote texts with inexhaustible wit, with depth and cabaret tips against inhuman stupidity. He worked closely with the composer Werner Richard Heymann, but also with Ralph Benatzky, Hanns Eisler, Hermann Leopoldi and Robert Stolz.
"I would have danced tonight" is also a musical-cabaret evening against forgetting.
Why? The success of chansons and cabaret in Germany in the 1920s and early 1930s would be unthinkable without Gilbert and many other artists with Jewish roots. But from 1933 they were persecuted, the genre of the chanson, the "intelligent song", was destroyed. We would like to remind you of that. "Chanson-Nette" Jeannette Urzendowsky is honorary ambassador of the German Cabaret Archive.
Robert Gilbert remained true to the Berlin dialect even in exile and was a pointed observer of his time: "It's important to complain, anyone can be nice".
Additional information
Booking: Tickets €27.50 per person, discounts available. Book online via the Theater im Palais website www.theater-im-palais.de (click on "Tickets" in the top left corner and then on "Calendar/online tickets"). The following link also takes you to the ticket ordering and seat selection page: https://theater-im-palais-berlin.reservix.de/tickets-ich-haett-getanzt-heut-nacht-in-berlin-theater-im-palais-am-6-5-2026/e2529137.
Directions:
The Theater im Palais is located on Unter den Linden boulevard in Berlin-Mitte, at Am Festungsgraben 1, directly behind Schinkel's Neue Wache, between the Maxim Gorki Theater and the German Historical Museum. It is easily accessible by subway line U5, getting off at the "Unter den Linden" or "Museumsinsel" stations.
More information about the program and the artists: www.chanson-nette.de
More information about the Theater im Palais
Small stage, great literature, cabaret, classical music—and Berlin, Berlin, Berlin! That's how you could sum up the Theater im Palais (TiP). Right in the heart of the city, classics, cabaret, and small-scale performances, often interwoven with music and stories about Berlin, are brought to life on the small 5 x 6 meter stage. There are only 99 seats, creating a charming atmosphere at every performance. Cabaret at its best! – in the heart of Berlin. And salon culture! Yes, there is also a theater-bar, which opens one hour before the performance begins. The theater has been located in the Palais am Festungsgraben since its inception in 1991. Website: www.theater-im-palais.de
Directions:
The Theater im Palais is located on Unter den Linden boulevard in Berlin-Mitte, at Am Festungsgraben 1, directly behind Schinkel's Neue Wache, between the Maxim Gorki Theater and the German Historical Museum. It is easily accessible by subway line U5, getting off at the "Unter den Linden" or "Museumsinsel" stations.
More information about the program and the artists: www.chanson-nette.de
More information about the Theater im Palais
Small stage, great literature, cabaret, classical music—and Berlin, Berlin, Berlin! That's how you could sum up the Theater im Palais (TiP). Right in the heart of the city, classics, cabaret, and small-scale performances, often interwoven with music and stories about Berlin, are brought to life on the small 5 x 6 meter stage. There are only 99 seats, creating a charming atmosphere at every performance. Cabaret at its best! – in the heart of Berlin. And salon culture! Yes, there is also a theater-bar, which opens one hour before the performance begins. The theater has been located in the Palais am Festungsgraben since its inception in 1991. Website: www.theater-im-palais.de
Accessibility
Participating artists
Henry Nandzik
Andrej Sur (Geige)
Valeriy Khoryshman (Akkordeon)
Alexander Franz (Kontrabass)
Isabelle Gensior (Regie)
"Chanson-Nette" Jeannette Urzendowsky
Dates
May 2026
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