Lausitz Festival 2026 — Hamlet in Cottbus

Lausitz Festival — Cultural Laboratory on the Polish Border

The Lausitz Festival was founded in 2020 as an ambitious theatre and music festival aiming to highlight the German-Sorbian-Polish Lusatia as a European cultural landscape. It is run by a non-profit limited liability company based in Görlitz, supported by federal and state governments of Brandenburg and Saxony, and a consortium of foundations. In 2026, the seventh edition will run from August 25 to September 13 at venues in Cottbus, Görlitz, Hoyerswerda, Forst, Bad Muskau, and in the post-mining landscape of the Lusatian mining region.

Hamlet in Hangar 1 — The Cottbus Festival Anchor

The acting highlight of the Cottbus programme line is the production of "Hamlet" after William Shakespeare in Hangar 1 at the former Cottbus airfield. Starring on stage are Corinna Harfouch and Götz Schubert — two of the most distinguished German-speaking theatre actors. The production intertwines classical acting with industrial architecture, which has been a hallmark of the festival for years: empty halls, large spaces, sound, and light as co-performers.

Piccolo Theater — Youth Club Production

Parallel to the Hangar production, the youth club at Cottbus's Piccolo Theater is developing its own interpretation of the Hamlet story. For decades, the Piccolo has been considered one of the most important children's and youth theatres in Brandenburg; the festival cooperation offers the theatre club the rare opportunity to work with a professional directing and production team.

Concerts: Tenebrae, Basel, Pierre-Laurent Aimard

The Cottbus festival line is complemented by a dense concert programme. Three highlights: the British Tenebrae Choir with an a cappella programme in the Cottbus Oberkirche, the Chamber Orchestra of Europe / Basel with an evening of Beethoven and Schubert, and the French pianist Pierre-Laurent Aimard with a solo recital. For the 2026 festival edition, a new art prize will also be awarded for the first time — details and prize winners will be announced at the festival office.

Cottbus — Cultural City of Lower Lusatia

Cottbus is the second-largest city in Brandenburg and the centre of the German Lower Lusatia (Niederlausitz). The city is located about 125 km southeast of Berlin and only 30 km from the Polish border. With its State Theatre, Branitz Park (UNESCO World Heritage Tentative List), Brandenburg University of Technology, and a growing off-scene, it is the ideal urban counterpart to the industrial wastelands and opencast mining lakes that the festival usually uses as venues.