Globe Berlin

A theatre like in Shakespeare's time

Managing Director Christian Leonard, former founder and Managing Director of the Shakespeare Company Berlin, has long dreamed of this: a circular wooden building with a stage on three sides and an audience on three levels. A wooden theatre building in which the audience can experience the action on stage intensively and up close - similar to what it might have been like more than 400 years ago in London's Globe Theatre, Shakespeare's theatre arena.

A colourful mix of London residents came together in the open air, in a place of entertainment, exchange and education.

Drama. Word art. World music.

Since 2019, the Globe Berlin in Charlottenburg has been a venue for genuine popular theatre in a unique open-air setting every year from June to September. The deliberately low-threshold programme is aimed at people of all ages, from different cultural backgrounds and is close to current social issues. The programme includes drama, spoken word and live music, Shakespeare performances in German and English in contemporary translations, German and international classics, as well as introductions and post-show discussions - all at moderate admission prices.

In the near future, the former Globe Theatre from Schwäbisch Hall, an already successful theatre building, is to be built on the 1700 square metre site near the Spree - slightly modified, but with a multifunctional extension as a workshop stage, foyer and catering area that can be used all year round. The replica of Shakespeare's legendary Volkstheater arena will be 14.5 metres high, measure 26 metres in diameter and have space for around 690 visitors on three floors.

Until the (re)construction begins, the dismantled theatre will be stored at its future location, with numerous wooden components already functioning as an open-air stage - forming a ring-shaped catwalk in the spirit of Shakespeare's Globe. At its centre, the audience sits in the middle of the action, in which the surrounding nature, the weather and the urban backdrop also play a role. Complemented by a number of imaginative transitional structures such as the "Butterfly" as a lounge for the artists and the "Octogon" as a foyer and rehearsal room, an extraordinary venue has been created where several thousand visitors have already experienced the diverse, multilingual programme.

The programme gives a good impression of the repertoire in the future Globe: Shakespeare , of course (in German and English), but also other authors, various concerts and guest performances.

The ensemble, directed by Leonard, translates classical theatre into modern formats, and Globe Berlin also presents productions by numerous other directors, including Carola Söllner (Maria Stuart), Anselm Lipgens (Wie es Euch gefällt, Urfaust), Mathias Schönsee (Ein Sommernachtsraum, Ameley, Hamlet) and Natalia Lapina (Macht.Krieg.Frieden(?)).

But the Globe Berlin also offers music. On Tuesdays, for example, the Swingin' Hermlins bring authentic US swing from the 1930s to the stage. The aim is to be cosmopolitan and to work with the pulse of the times.