3rd Vilseck Castle Festival — EILLES

Summer Theatre Under the Open Castle Sky

Castle festivals have a tradition in Bavaria — and for three years now, also in Vilseck, a small town in the Amberg-Sulzbach district. The Vilseck City Theatre uses the picturesque courtyard of the medieval Dagestein Castle as an open-air stage. The castle belongs to the town and is one of Vilseck's landmarks. The organizer is the Town of Vilseck with its cultural office; the direction is by Bernhard Neumann, who was also responsible for the first two editions.

EILLES — A Vilseck Success Story

In 2026, the festival is dedicated to a very special son of Vilseck: Joseph Eilles, born in Vilseck in the 19th century as the son of a baker, who escaped his conservative father's household and, together with his wife Fanny, founded a tea and delicatessen shop on Munich's Karlsplatz. This became the Munich traditional brand EILLES, still in existence today — synonymous with high-quality tea, coffee, and delicacies. The title "The Best Is Just Good Enough!" quotes Eilles' company philosophy.

A Comedy by Gerda Stauner

The play is written by Upper Palatinate author Gerda Stauner, who also wrote texts related to Vilseck for the first two Vilseck Castle Festivals. "It will be a historical topic that — as with the previous productions — should be connected to Vilseck," Stauner explained. It is an "exciting, humorous, and at the same time touching comedy". Director: Bernhard Neumann. Assistant Directors: Maria Friedrich and Maria Schendzielorz. Costume Design: Beate Stock.

Vilseck in the Amberg-Sulzbach Region

Vilseck is a small, charming town in the Amberg-Sulzbach district in the Upper Palatinate. Its historic old town with Dagestein Castle, the town wall, and several churches is one of the best-preserved in the central Upper Palatinate. A visit to the castle festival can be combined with a day trip to Amberg, the Oberpfälzer Jura, or the Hirschwald Nature Park.