Theatertreffen

Theatertreffen 2015

Warten auf Godot. Proben auf der Gegenschräge

Deutsches Theater Berlin, Bar

Warten auf Godot. Proben auf der Gegenschr&auml;ge

Theatertreffen linksbündig_neu

cookieConsent

Berliner Festspiele linksbündig_neu

appFooterBfsLogo

Gropius Bau linksbündig_neu

appFooterFestivals0

Jazzfest Berlin linksbündig_neu

appFooterFestivals1

MaerzMusik linksbündig_neu

appFooterFestivals2

Musikfest Berlin linksbündig_neu

appFooterFestivals3

Performing Arts Season_neu

appFooterFestivals4

Reflexe und Reflexionen

appFooterFestivals5

Treffen junge Szene linksbündig_neu

appFooterFestivals6

appFooterLinks0

appFooterLinks1

appFooterLinks2

appFooterLinks3

appFooterLinks4

appFooterLinks5

appFooterLinks6

appFooterLinks7

appFooterSocials0

appFooterSocials1

appFooterSocials2

BKM-Logo englisch

appFooterSponsors0

appHeaderMenuFestivals0

links0

links1

appHeaderMenuGroups0

links2

appHeaderMenuGroups1

links3

links4

links5

links6

links7

links8

links9

links10

links11

appHeaderMenuGroups2

appHeaderMenuGroups3

appHeaderMenuLinks0

appHeaderMenuLinks1

Every year, the Theatertreffen brings the 10 most remarkable productions from German-speaking countries and works by up-and-coming artists from around the world to Berlin.

Fallback-Bild Theatertreffen

theatertreffen-config

No events of Theatertreffen today

ctas0

ctas1

ctas2

Livestreams of the 2025 Theatertreffen

Theatertreffen 2025

Today’s Events

Installations

todayButton

program

ctas

smartInfo

The 2025 Open Call

This Open Call for the International Forum is addressed at artists at the beginning of their artistic practice who have already gathered some initial professional experience. They may be from all sectors of the performing arts, especially from the fields of directing, acting, set and costume design, dramaturgy, text production, music, video, performance, media, choreography, production management and theatre education.Around 35 artists from around the world will be invited to come to Berlin, to watch theatre together, to talk, to (re-)consider, to experiment and to make connections. The fellows will have the opportunity to attend the festival, to take part in intensive workshops with international artists, to reflect together the productions invited to Theatertreffen and theatre in general and to exchange ideas.Deadline for applications: 5 December 2024 (23:59, CET)

International Forum

visibility

Open Call 2026

This Open Call for the International Forum is addressed at theatre makers at the beginning of their artistic careers who have already gathered some initial professional experience. They may be from all sectors of the performing arts, especially from the fields of directing, acting, set and costume design, dramaturgy, text production, music, video, performance, choreography and theatre education.Around 30 artists from around the world will be invited to come to Berlin, to watch theatre together, to talk, to (re-)consider, to experiment and to make connections. The fellows will have the opportunity to attend the festival, to take part in intensive workshops with international artists, to reflect together the productions invited to Theatertreffen and theatre in general and to exchange ideas.Deadline for applications: 30 November 2025 (23:59, CET)

tt25_atmo_lampions_decke

On 22 January, the Theatertreffen’s jury of critics announced their selection of the 10 most remarkable productions for the 2025 Theatertreffen at a press conference. Our congratulations go to the nominated production teams and all participants!

The 10 Most Remarkable Productions 2025

tt24_laios_anthropolis_II_c_monika_rittershaus_key

A new edition of “BURNING ISSUES x Theatertreffen” is in planning under the title “PERFORMING ARTS &amp; SOLIDARITY”, in co-operation with Szenografie-Bund as well as with Deutsches Theater Berlin and Sophiensaele. The Theatertreffen-programme, which will feature a range of discursive formats and keynotes, is being developed by Nora Hertlein-Hull together with dramaturgs Aljoscha Begrich and Sima Djabar Zadegan with reference to the ten selected productions.&nbsp; Nele Hertling will receive the Theatre Prize Berlin of Stiftung Preu&szlig;ische Seehandlung for her services to the theatre. As Theatertreffen’s long-standing media partner, 3sat will present especially produced TV-recordings of productions invited to the festival in its programme. This year’s “Starke St&uuml;cke” are: “Bucket List” (Schaub&uuml;hne am Lehniner Platz), “Laios. ANTHROPOLIS II” (Deutsches SchauSpielHaus Hamburg) and “Macbeth” (Schauspielhaus Bochum).&nbsp; The programme schedule of the 2024 Theatertreffen will be published on 5&nbsp;April; ticket sales begin on 19&nbsp;April.&nbsp;

Preparations Are Underway for the 2024 Edition of the Festival

tt23_seitenbild_forum

The Theatertreffen invites 30 exciting artists from all parts of the world to attend and reflect the festival and to exchange ideas and experiences across artistic and national boundaries. We are very much looking forward to welcoming all participants and thank everyone for their applications! More than 700 artists from 75 countries responded to the Open Call published in the autumn of 2023.

The 2024 International Forum Participants

tt24_blog_teaser

0110

“Reviews are the worst thing about this job,” comments director Jette Steckel, who was invited to the 2023 Theatertreffen with “Die Vaterlosen”, in a guest article written for the Theatertreffen-Blog. Here young art journalists took a critical look at the 10 productions and themes all around the Theatertreffen. Reviews, essays and interviews were published continuously throughout the festival. You can read, for example, about “Lord of the Rings” fan Leonard Haverkamp’s experience of the accessible installation “Riesenhaft in Mittelerde”™ or Marta Ivkić’s review of “Bucket List”. And you can also learn more about the creative interactions of the 29 participants in the International Forum in Elliot Douglas’s article “The power of collaborative theatre”.

Perspectives on Theatertreffen

tt25_impressionen_3satpreis

tt25_impressionen_double_serpent

tt25_impressionen_die_maschine

tt25_impressionen_die_maschine_1

tt25_impressionen_eö_forum

tt25_impressionen_eol

tt25_impressionen_eol_1

tt25_impressionen_internationales_forum

tt25_impressionen_internationales_forum_1

tt25_impressionen_ja_nichts_ist_ok

tt25_impressionen_juryabschlussdiskussion

tt25_impressionen_kontakthof

tt25_impressionen_alfred_kerr_darstellerpreis_1

tt25_impressionen_kontakthof_1

tt25_impressionen_made_in_china

tt25_impressionen_narrowing_spaces

tt25_impressionen_sancta

tt25_impressionen_sancta_1

tt25_impressionen_something_is_approaching

tt25_impressionen_theaterpreis_berlin

tt25_impressionen_theatertreffenparty

tt25_impressionen_theatertreffenparty_1

tt25_impressionen_und_jetzt

tt25_impressionen_alfred_kerr_darstellerpreis

tt25_impressionen_unser_deutschlandmaerchen

tt25_impressionen_wanaset_yodit

tt25_impressionen_text_tisch_wasserglas

tt25_impressionen_bernarda_albas_haus

tt25_impressionen_blutbuch

tt25_impressionen_blutbuch_1

tt25_impressionen_die_gewehre_der_frau_carrar

tt25_impressionen_die_gewehre_der_frau_carrar_1

tt25_impressionen_die_gewehre_der_frau_carrar_0

media

Theatertreffen 2025: Impressionen

Theatertreffen 2025: Impressions

0111

Impressions

Theatertreffen 2025

01110

slides

tt24_atmo_auswahl_10_inszenierungen

slides0

Each year, the 10 most remarkable productions are selected by a jury of critics from up to 600&nbsp;shows within the German-language region and the viewing period.

The 10 Productions

tt25_rahmenprogramm_c_Fabian_Schellhorn_004

slides1

On the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the International Forum, a special framing programme will exclusively present alumni of the International Forum.

Forum Theatertreffen 1965–2025

slides2

The International Forum is an initial impetus for collaboration, the search for diverse local perspectives on global issues, and a free space for developing artistic ideas together.

International Forum

tt23_seitenbild_blog

slides3

Aspiring arts journalists with a keen interest in the theatre&nbsp;will attend and critically reflect the Theatertreffen with the support of experienced mentors.

Theatertreffen-Blog

tt25_nachtgespraeche_c_Fabian_Schellhorn

slides4

Short impulse key notes by alumni of the International Forum will be followed by conversations between participants from the respective production and the audience about decisions regarding content and aesthetics.

Audience Talks

At a Glance

tt25_juryessay

01111

by Martin Thomas Pesl

In his essay on the theatre year 2024, Theatertreffen-juror Martin Thomas Pesl looks to the past and to the future – and finds legacy issues, multiple identities, AI and even a spark of hope.

Black is the New Black

01112

teasers

ctaButton

teasers0

The upcoming 2025 Theatertreffen is inspiring and exciting. This year’s festival promises new stories, new voices and new perspectives. We have the opportunity to experience seven premieres and the works of just as many directors showcasing their productions at the Theatertreffen for the first time, such as works from the Theater Magdeburg and the Vienna-based production and performance venue brut Wien. For us as theatre-goers, this is as an excellent opportunity to embrace new narratives and engage in new forms of story-telling and presentation which we have never, or only rarely, experienced in theatre.

Claudia Roth, Minister of State for Culture and the Media

teasers1

By Martin Thomas Pesl

Black is the New Black

01113

01114

A few years ago, the director Katie Mitchell’s daughter gave her a seemingly simple task: not to create any more theatre productions that ended with women killing themselves. Mitchell’s production of “Bernada Albas Haus” opens the 2025 Theatertreffen. In staging this new version of the classic by Alice Birch, Mitchell has nevertheless made the artistic decision that the female characters should decide to die at the end of the production. In the director’s vision, it is impossible for people at present to envisage themselves and their future escaping a spiral of increasing violence.

Katarzyna Wielga-Skolimowska and Kirsten Ha&szlig;, German Federal Cultural Foundation

01115

tt26_atmo_jury_c_eike_walkenhorst

Seven theatre critics determine the festival’s 10 most remarkable productions.&nbsp;

The 2026 Theatertreffen-Jury

tt25_atmo_lampions_baum

The Theatertreffen’s database lists every production, theatre and director invited to the festival since 1964.

The Theatertreffen Database since 1964

tt25_story_jury_headerbild

teasers2

Exclusive insights, anecdotes and hotel experiences from three years of the jury’s daily life with trips to 3,943&nbsp;productions

From the Life of the Theatertreffen-Jury 2025

Key Visual Theatertreffen 2026

Theatertreffen sw

01117

International Forum, Discussions, Awards

The 10 Most Remarkable Productions

01118

gb25_diane_arbus_lady_bartender_at_home_with_a_souvenir dog_new_orleans_la_1964

Widely regarded as one of the most original and influential artists of the 20th century, Diane Arbus’ bold black-and-white photographs demolish aesthetic conventions and upend all certainties. Gropius Bau presents the most comprehensive exhibition of her work to date.

Diane Arbus: Konstellationen

pas25_showroomdummies_4

Performers and life-sized dolls – living creatures and inanimate objects – come together in Gisèle Vienne’s and Étienne Bideau-Rey’s dance-theatre performance “Showroomdummies #4”. The choreography in slow motion – composed in dialogue with original music by Peter Rehberg – is diffracting time and thus enabling usually unseen parts of experiences to be seen.

Showroomdummies #4

pas25_tanzende-idioten

In Thorsten Lensing’s new play, Ursina Lardi, Karin Neuh&auml;user, Sebastian Blomberg, André Jung and drummer Willi Kellers play characters careening their way from one disaster to the next. What defines them is an absurd blend of brutality and tenderness, anarchy and metaphysical curiosity, existential pain and zest for life.

Tanzende Idioten

pas25_ultimo_helecho_c_nina_laisne_05

teasers3

As an international co-production, artists Nina Laisné and François Chaignaud and singer Nadia Larcher have developed a performance that is carried by music, singing and dance at once. In “Último helecho”, European Baroque meets South American folklore and mythology.

Último helecho

More Berliner Festspiele

Key Visual Theatertreffen 2025

01119

Forum Theatertreffen 1965–2025, discussions, awards

main

Each year, the Theatertreffen brings the 10 most remarkable productions from the German-language region as well as the works of emerging artists to Berlin.