The Deutsches Nationaltheater Weimar's “Sommertheater”, June to August 2021

The industrial site of the "Erstes Weimarer Elektrizitätswerk" is steeped in history, and since the middle of the 1990s it has provided the inspiration for both national and international art projects. In the summer of 2021, the Deutsches Nationaltheater (DNT) in Weimar constructed a large open air stage for its "Sommertheater" (Summer Theatre) on the site by the River Ilm. The pandemic made it extremely difficult for those in charge at the DNT to plan the new season. However, they were determined to offer audiences proper theatre on a real stage once again in the summer with pleasure and passion. Preparations commenced in a spirit of courage and optimism, but it was not until the beginning of May that the final decision was made. Construction work began just eight days later, on 17th May, with two weeks of rehearsals due to get underway at the beginning of June for Shakespeare's comedy "As You Like It", scheduled to premiere on 18th June. Following this production's first series of performances, which ran until 4th July, the stage scenery was set up for the Mozart opera "La finta giardiniera". Once again, rehearsals started straightaway, with the premiere scheduled for 18th July – followed by ten further performances up until 1st August. The "Sommertheater" programme from 12th to 22nd August saw a further nine performances of Shakespeare's play.

We were commissioned by the DNT to act as its general contractor, whereby we provided all of the technical equipment for both productions, which of course placed different demands on the workings of the stage and the equipment. For the first production, for example, we had to install a 200 m² curtain on a rail system, including the necessary special truss set-up and integration into the stage construction – and also had to do the structural calculations as well as arrange for registration with and acceptance by the relevant authorities.

The grandstand had to accommodate 700 people, regardless of the size of audience ultimately permitted by the authorities. All of the equipment had to be installed in such a way as to ensure no failures during three months of operation. That mainly meant that all the equipment had to be able to withstand the weather conditions as the summer theatre stage was planned without a roof so that it blended in better with the site's architectural context.

We realised the set-up in very close collaboration with the DNT technicians, with whom we also formed the joint crew for the performances. Both productions featured audio tracking, delighting audiences with perfect sound for an ideal auditory experience.

Matthias Schmitt, theatre critic at the MDR-Kultur TV station, wrote: "The applause was rapturous for the premiere of 'As You Like It' in Weimar. The seats were well filled and the old summer theatre feeling was back: it was a total success." His recommendation to his readers was: "Go along and see for yourself!"