Greizer Theaterherbst

From Workshop to Stage

The Greizer Theaterherbst is different from most theatre festivals: the audience doesn't just see guest performances, but original productions developed together with workshop participants over several months. The festival sees itself as a sociocultural theatre project — founded in 1991, awarded multiple times, and recipient of the Thuringian Culture Prize in 2010. The venue is the small town of Greiz, former residence of the Princes Reuss Elder Line, in the far east of Thuringia on the border with Saxony.

The Workshops

Every year, six workshops are announced — theatre, puppet theatre, music, criticism, and writing. Participants from Germany and abroad come to Greiz for several intensive weeks. The workshops are led by professional theatre makers. At the end, there are premieres that are performed as part of the festival — alongside invited guest performances from Russia, Italy, France, the Czech and Slovak Republics, Bulgaria, Poland, Switzerland, the Netherlands, and Belgium.

Diverse Venues

The festival uses several locations in Greiz: the Kulturkirche Aubachtal, the 10aRium, the Cultural Café in the Heyersches Haus, the Vogtlandhalle, the Haus Friedensbrücke, and the Alte Papierfabrik. This distribution gives the various pieces their fitting atmosphere — from classic theatre spaces to industrial backdrops.

Recognizable in Eastern Thuringia

With the Theaterherbst, Greiz has established itself as one of the most important theatre addresses outside the major metropolises. Around 50 active participants and approximately 100 performing artists per edition make the festival a mix of workshop, adult education centre, and premiere stage.