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Summer theater attracts with classics and new locations

Summer theater attracts with classics and new locations
There is also summer theater again at the Naturtheater Greifensteine. (Archive image) / Photo: Hendrik Schmidt/dpa
From: DieSachsen News
Town hall balcony, industrial monument or rock stage as a backdrop: Saxon theaters attract audiences in summer with a variety of productions. What highlights await visitors?

Shakespeare classics, rock operas, musicals or adventure plays for the whole family: Saxony's theaters are once again welcoming audiences to a wide variety of productions this summer. Both well-known and completely new venues will be staged, according to a survey by the German Press Agency.

For Skakespeare's tragedy "Romeo and Juliet", for example, the market square in Zittau will become an open-air stage for the first time. The "opulent production against a magnificent historical backdrop" will premiere on June 13, as announced by the Gerhart-Hauptmann-Theater. The balcony of the town hall will be used for what is probably the best-known scene in the famous love story. "No one who has seen the play will be able to go to the town hall in future without thinking of Romeo and Juliet," believes director Ingo Putz.

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Old slaughterhouse as a backdrop

The Gerhart-Hauptmann-Theater will open a new outdoor venue at its second location on 30 May. The rock opera "Jesus Christ Superstar" by Andrew Lloyd Webber will be staged at the Alter Schlachthof in Görlitz. In previous years, the former goods station and a former engineering factory have been the backdrop for summer theater in the Neisse city.

Since 2012, the grounds of the Krabat Mill in Schwarzkollm near Hoyerswerda have been used every year. From June 27 to July 19, the third part of the Krabat saga entitled "In the Fog of Loneliness" can be seen. There is once again high demand for the total of around 18,000 seats, said Anton Fuchs, Managing Director of the cultural center.

The Deutsch-Sorbisches Volkstheater has been transforming the courtyard of Ortenburg Castle in Bautzen into a stage for many years. On June 18, "Spuk von draußen oder Karasek's Treasure" premieres there. Author and director Lutz Hillmann drew inspiration for the play from the 1987 television series of the same name. He relocated the plot for his free stage adaptation to Upper Lusatia and the present day. According to the theater, around 24,000 tickets have been sold so far, which corresponds to an occupancy rate of almost 70 percent.

Modern Jane Austen classic

The Theater Plauen-Zwickau relies on several open-air venues. The family-friendly play "Alice in Wonderland" opens in Zwickau's Theaterhof on June 11. From June 12, "Pride and Prejudice* (*or so)", a modern and humorous adaptation of the Jane Austen classic, will be performed in the courtyard of the medieval Schönfels Castle in Lichtentanne (Zwickau district). The premiere of the musical "The Count of Monte Cristo" is scheduled for June 13 at the Parktheater Plauen. In Zwickau, the adaptation of the well-known novel by Alexandre Dumas can be seen on the open-air stage at the Schwanenteich from August 28.

The Chemnitz Theater will present "The Jungle Book" on the open-air stage in Küchwald on 13 June. A further 16 performances of the story about the human boy Mowgli will follow until mid-July. Together with other partners, the Chemnitz theater also organizes the international festival for contemporary stage art "Theater der Welt". From June 18 to July 5, performances are planned in urban spaces and unusual locations.

Rock stage with an impressive view

The Erzgebirgische Theater- und Orchester GmbH will open the Greifenstein Festival on June 20 with a revival of the popular play "The Little Witch". The season on the natural stage in Ehrenfriedersdorf runs until August 30. The first premiere will be the adventure play "Pippi Longstocking" based on Astrid Lindgren on July 4. On July 24, "The Bush Ghost", an Erzgebirge musical based on Karl May, will be performed.

"Pippi Longstocking" will also be performed at the Felsenbühne Rathen in Saxon Switzerland this year. According to the Landesbühnen Sachsen, almost 1,700 premiere guests attended the season opener on May 16. The next premiere will follow on May 30 with the musical "The Little Shop of Horrors". Six successful plays from the theater's repertoire as well as top-class guest performances complete the program of the Felsenbühne Festival in the spa town of Rathen.

Oldest natural stage in Saxony

The oldest natural stage in Saxony is the Naturtheater in Bad Elster in the Vogtland region, where various cultural events will once again take place in the open air between May and September. This year's highlights include Verdi's opera "The Troubadour" on June 19.

The drama department of the Leipzig University of Music and Performing Arts traditionally brings the inner courtyard of the Grassi Museum in the trade fair city to life in summer. This year, under the title "A Kingdom for a Ball", students will embark on a search for clues to the mystery of soccer. After the premiere on July 1, the play will be performed several times until July 12. The covered courtyard of the Kunst- und Gewerbegenossenschaft Feinkost eG in Leipzig also hosts theater performances every summer. The "colourful programme" for this year starts on 1 July under the motto "Kess, kompakt und knackig", the organizers announced.

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