Stadtbühne Vohenstrauß – Kultursommer Geisterbräu

A New Beginning for Stadtbühne Vohenstrauß

Stadtbühne Vohenstrauß e.V. is launching a new Kultursommer in 2026. After the end of the Landestheater Oberpfalz, the ensemble has returned to its roots and will now use the Friedrichsburg Castle Gardens in Vohenstrauß (Neustadt an der Waldnaab district, Upper Palatinate, Bavaria) as an open-air stage. The town of Vohenstrauß fully supports the project and aims to establish the summer as an annual highlight in the regional cultural calendar.

»Der Geisterbräu« – A Bavarian Comedy from 1937

The central play of the 2026 Kultursommer is »Der Geisterbräu«, a classic Bavarian folk comedy by Joseph Maria Lutz from 1937. It focuses on a widowed brewery owner who inherits a heavily indebted brewery after her husband's death. To ward off greedy marriage candidates, the master brewer stages a palpable ghost-like haunting – a comedy of errors full of humor and supernatural entanglements. The performance duration is approximately 110 minutes, plus a 20-minute intermission.

Ensemble and Direction

The chairman of the Stadtbühne is Johannes Pausch, who also shapes the summer program. Experienced ensemble actors, including Gerhard Wölfel and Gerhard Kühner, will be on stage. In July, a second play for younger audiences, »Rapunzel« – a family adaptation based on the Brothers Grimm, adapted by Johannes Pausch with music by Franz Adam – will follow.

Venue: Friedrichsburg Castle Gardens

Performances will take place in the Friedrichsburg Castle Gardens, the historic Renaissance castle of Vohenstrauß. The backdrop of the castle, gardens, and town center lends a special atmosphere to the open-air theatre, making the Kultursommer a flagship event for the town in the northern Upper Palatinate Forest.