Theatertreffen 2023

The Theatertreffen is regarded as the summit of German-language theatre and is held every year in May in Berlin. Since 2004, the German Federal Cultural Foundation has supported the Theatertreffen as one of its "cultural beacons". In 2023, the festival will invite the ten most remarkable performances from the previous season from German-speaking theatre to Berlin for the 60th time. This year's edition will take place from 12 to 29 May 2023 at the Haus der Berliner Festspiele and other venues in Berlin and for the first time under the direction of the new Festival Director Matthias Pees.

For the first time, an international management team will be responsible for the Theatertreffen: Thea Olena Apchel, Carolin Hochleichter and Joanna Nuckowska. With 10 meetings (external link, opens in a new window), they have developed a series of events and artistic and discursive interventions that are intended to create new resonance spaces for the tradition-rich Theatertreffen on a European level.

The ten remarkable productions were selected by the seven critics Eva Behrendt, Janis El-Bira, Valeria Heintges, Sabine Leucht, Petra Paterno, Katrin Ullmann and Sascha Westphal. They viewed and discussed productions from Germany, Austria and Switzerland in the period from 29 January 2022 to 20 January 2023. As in the past two years, the jury considered video recordings and purely digital theatre productions in addition to live performances. The selection process was still subject to the women's quota of at least 50 per cent in the director position introduced in 2020.

Invited to the 60th Theatertreffen 2023 are:

The ten remarkable productions were selected by the seven critics Eva Behrendt, Janis El-Bira, Valeria Heintges, Sabine Leucht, Petra Paterno, Katrin Ullmann and Sascha Westphal. They viewed and discussed productions from Germany, Austria and Switzerland in the period from 29 January 2022 to 20 January 2023. As in the past two years, the jury considered video recordings and purely digital theatre productions in addition to live performances. The selection process was still subject to the women's quota of at least 50 per cent in the director position introduced in 2020.

Invited to the 60th Theatertreffen 2023 are:

• "Das Vermächtnis (The Inheritance). Part 1 and Part 2"

by Matthew Lopez
translated from the American by Hannes Becker
freely adapted from the novel "Howards End" by E.M. Forster
Director and stage director: Philipp Stölzl
Residenztheater (Bavarian State Theatre)

• "The bus to Dachau. A 21st Century Memoir"

by De Warme Winkel and ensemble
Concept and direction: Vincent Rietveld, Ward Weemhoff (De Warme Winkel)
A production by Schauspielhaus Bochum and De Warme Winkel
Co-producer Internationaal Theatre Amsterdam

• „Der Einzige und sein Eigentum“ ("The only one and his property")

A piece of music theatre by Sebastian Hartmann and PC Nackt after Max Stirner
Director and stage: Sebastian Hartmann
Deutsches Theater Berlin

• "The natives of Maria Blut"

by Maria Lazar
Stage version by Lucia Bihler and Alexander Kerlin
Director: Lucia Bihler
Burgtheater (Vienna)

• "A Midsummer Night's Dream"

by William Shakespeare
German by Angela Schanelec in collaboration with Jürgen Gosch and Wolfgang Wiens
in a version by Antú Romero Nunes and ensemble
Director: Antú Romero Nunes
Theatre Basel

• "Hamlet"    

Tragedy by William Shakespeare
Version by Philipp Preuss using the translation by Marius von Mayenburg
Director: Philipp Preuss
Anhaltisches Theater Dessau

• "Children of the Sun"

by Maxim Gorky
German by Ulrike Zemmer
Director: Mateja Koležnik
Schauspielhaus Bochum

• "Nora"

A thriller by Sivan Ben Yishai, Henrik Ibsen, Gerhild Steinbuch, Ivna Žic
German translation Tobias Herzberg, Hinrich Schmidt-Henkel
Director: Felicitas Brucker
Münchner Kammerspiele

• "Ophelia's Got Talent"

by Florentina Holzinger | Concept and director: Florentina Holzinger
A production of Volksbühne am Rosa-Luxemburg-Platz and Spirit in co-production with Productiehuis Theatre Rotterdam, Tanzquartier Wien, Arsenic Lausanne, asphalt Festival, Gessnerallee Zurich, Kampnagel International Summer Festival and DE SINGEL Antwerp

• „Zwiegespräch“ ("Dialogue")

by Peter Handke
Directed by Rieke Süßkow
Burgtheater (Vienna)