lit:potsdam — Literature Festival

lit:potsdam and its Artistic Signature

The literature festival lit:potsdam was founded in 2013 in the state capital Potsdam and has since developed into one of the most important German literature festivals — not an industry conference, but a concentrated format for encounters between writers, readers, and interested parties. The artistic director is Denis Scheck, who has given the festival a curatorially dense and thematically focused form. Events take place less in classical bookstores and more in "unusual" venues: rafts on the Havel river, in gardens, villas, and at Schiffbauergasse.

Festival Theme 2026: 'The Language of the Stars'

The theme for 2026 is 'The Language of the Stars,' focusing on the connection between literature and astronomy/space travel. The opening on June 30th at the Hans Otto Theater will feature poet and astronomer Raoul Schrott in conversation with Denis Scheck. On July 2nd, ESA astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti and ESA Director Josef Aschbacher will be guests — an encounter between literature and real spaceflight history.

Program Highlights

On July 3rd, 'A Celebration of Literature' will take place with Judith Hermann and Christoph Ransmayr, on July 5th the Book Festival at Schiffbauergasse, and the closing evening with Florian Illies at the Hans Otto Theater. Salman Rushdie and Siri Hustvedt were already guests in March 2026 as a pre-festival event. Other participants in 2026 (selection): Anne-Dore Krohn, Florian Illies, Judith Hermann, Christoph Ransmayr, Raoul Schrott, Samantha Cristoforetti, Josef Aschbacher.

Schiffbauergasse as a Focal Point

Schiffbauergasse — Potsdam's cultural heart beyond the classic palace tourism — is a central venue. The Hans Otto Theater provides the grand opening and closing framework, while smaller readings take place in villas, gardens, and on rafts. This spatial dispersion makes lit:potsdam a city-wide festival that actively integrates Potsdam's landscape — Havel river, islands, palace region — into literary mediation.

Brandenburg as a Literary Landscape

With lit:potsdam, the Book Festival, the literary series at the Brandenburg palaces, and the Kleist Museum in Frankfurt (Oder), Brandenburg is surprisingly well-positioned literarily. lit:potsdam is the most internationally prominent of these formats and underscores the state capital's role as a cultural hub.