Theater in a small space

The description could hardly be more hymn-like: “The program does not follow any (fashion) trend, but deals with the world and literature – literally in the smallest of spaces. This is where it becomes concrete what theater means when it says that it creates social cohesion through its presence and through the topics it brings in," says one fan, describing the Das Zimmer theater. With these sentences, that fan had anonymously suggested the small house in Hamburg-Horn to the city of Hamburg for the Barbara Kisseler Theater Prize, which is endowed with 50,000 euros. And the jury followed him after appraisal and published his assessment in their statement.

This year's award honors one of the smallest private theaters in the city, which brings theater to a district that otherwise has little cultural offerings with great commitment and artistic standards. A former shop on Washingtonallee is the home of this mini theatre.

The windows are covered with tarpaulins from the inside, it could also be a betting shop or storage room if it weren't for the large letters in white, red and black that read what is hidden behind the window front - namely the theater, the room. If the visitors step through the narrow door, they first reach a mini-cabin with hatch, where the ticket counter and technical center are located in one. Then a small room with black walls opens up, a few rows of chairs are on the same level in front of the stage. Just 40 seats are spread over 50 square meters. In the back there is a small room, the theater bar, where everyone can help themselves and choose the price.

More than eight years ago, Sandra Kiefer, Lars Ceglecki and Jan Holtappels took over the house, which has been called Theater in der Washingtonallee since it was founded in 1999. "We were captivated by this place and felt something like awe," remembers the actress and theater teacher Kiefer.

Originally, the three wanted to use the theater as a rehearsal room. But then the temptation and also the responsibility for the place in Horn and beyond that had become an institution was too great. "I think it's every actor's dream to run a theater one day," says Ceglecki. For him personally, a theater like that, a room theatre. There, where the audience sees every look, every drop of sweat or even the insecurity of the actors and where an intimacy can be felt that is not possible in large theaters. Interactions between actors and viewers also develop quickly here.

For this, Kiefer and Ceglecki – Holtappels has since been eliminated – choose their pieces very carefully. They sometimes reduce works that were originally written for 20 people to three. There's no room for more on the stage. And somehow they seem to always manage to hit the nerve of the times. There was, for example, the refugee drama “Das Schiff Esperanza”, originally a radio play that the now 50-year-old Ceglecki met at school and then brought to the stage in 2016, a few years in advance, when the topic was highly topical again. Or most recently Kleist's "The Marquise von O.", a novella about women's self-determination. It could be seen in the Theater das Zimmer when people took to the streets in Iran, all over the world, after the murder of a young Iranian woman.

In the coming week, "Felix" will start, a play based on the NDR podcast "The Talented Mr. Vossen" about a wealthy imposter. "We asked ourselves what kind of person it is who cheats, but also who allows himself to be deceived," explains the theater director. Three actors slip into all roles, show different perspectives that blur together. Each scene follows a different set of instructions, choreographed by Sandra Kiefer.

It's an experimental approach. "We don't follow any genre when selecting the pieces or the type of our production, but we look for pieces and themes that fit into this space, but also into our time," says Ceglecki, who, like Kiefer, was also regularly involved in Wiesbaden had. Kiefer also works as a theater teacher, Ceglecki gives workshops at schools and companies, for team building, for communication training or as self-awareness, it's a mixture of theater and coaching. Her main job, her passion, however, is the theater the room. And they celebrate this passion on Sunday at the award ceremony in the Opernloft with Senator for Culture Carsten Brosda (SPD) and everyone involved in the 2021/2022 season. After that, the much-needed renovation and refurbishment of the theater will begin – the prize money will help them with that.