Scheune Cultural Center Celebrates Its Reopening

After four years of renovations, the popular Scheune cultural center in Dresden’s Neustadt district is reopening its doors. On the opening weekend, the city and Scheune e.V. are hosting a three-day celebration featuring a diverse program.

Reopening celebration with concerts, a kids’ disco, and new program formats

The festivities kick off in the evening with an official opening ceremony and several concerts. On Saturday, visitors can rediscover the renovated building starting at 3 p.m., get to know new formats from the upcoming program, and enjoy performances by neighbors and friends. The event concludes on Sunday with more concerts, a kids’ disco, and a culinary gathering.

Mayor Dirk Hilbert (FDP) sees the reopening as good news for Dresden’s cultural landscape. “The new spaces open up entirely new possibilities for scheune e.V. in terms of concerts, dance, social gatherings, and its own projects. A vibrant cultural city needs exactly these kinds of places,” he said, according to a press release.

Renovation Due to Various Deficiencies

The Scheune underwent extensive renovation and remodeling starting in October 2022. Since the last renovation in the 1990s, structural defects had developed, and adjustments to fire safety and building security were also necessary. “We took advantage of this opportunity and said: If we have to renovate the building so extensively, then let’s take a look at what the cultural community here still needs,” said Stephan Kühn (Greens), the city’s mayor in charge of construction.

The result is a new building with new spaces and modern amenities that preserves the defining elements of the previous structure and visibly carries on the history of the site. The event venue was built on the ruins of a sports hall destroyed during World War II and opened in 1951 as an FDJ youth center. In 2007, scheune e.V. took over the venue.