Theatertreffen

For their studies of the depths of human experience, the productions’ artistic teams have largely chosen familiar texts and stories which they have chewed over, twisted and turned to release surprising odours of the present day. In formal and aesthetic terms, the invited performances span a wide spectrum. From a costume drama to a musical performed naked, from a discursive experiment to two performance marathons: this year’s jury selection promises impressive (storytelling) theatre with some stunning evenings that sometimes cunningly steer us into uncertain territory and make us re-examine our own ethical boundaries.

Ethics, social phenomena and politics will all be discussed in our reconceived framing programme that concentrates on the areas of drama and discourse. For the new format Mehr Drama! a group of distinguished playwrights have each personally chosen new voices in contemporary playwriting for you. These writers are at different stages of their careers: some are fresh out of university; others have already been presented to the public in initial staged readings or have even won awards. The texts by these selected emerging playwrights will be presented in classic readings with high-quality casts. These are followed by conversations between the playwrights and the authors responsible for their selection. We warmly thank the Heinz und Heide Dürr Stiftung for sponsoring Mehr Drama!
Meanwhile the discourse programme invites you to examine themes raised by the 10 most remarkable productions further together with eminent guests from a variety of fields and with some unexpected perspectives. Two films, three podium discussions and an exhibition in the foyers offer surprising connections between the productions and our challenging present, curated by the theatre, film and media critic Matthias Dell. The discourse programme is funded by the Federal Agency for Civic Education: many thanks! We would also like to express great thanks all our other co-operation partners and funding bodies for their faithful collaboration and continuing support, most notably the German Federal Cultural Foundation and our media partner 3sat.

“Through art we learn to tolerate each other as a society,” the former Theatertreffen juror and Janis El-Bira wrote in a text about how culture is indispensable to society. Even if it might sometimes seem challenging, debate in the theatre also trains us to cope with ambivalence. With this in mind, we wish you controversial, enriching and fulfilling moments at the 2026 Theatertreffen!

Nora Hertlein-Hull 
Director Theatertreffen