Theater im Zimmer, Classical theatre in Harvestehude, Germany

Theater im Zimmer occupies a Neoclassical villa built in 1829 at Alsterchaussee 30, near the Alster in Hamburg-Harvestehude. The merchant Christian Gerhard Schwieger commissioned the house; architects Hans and Oskar Gerson remodeled it in 1926. Georg Wellhausen converted it into a theatre in 1952, and the building has been a protected monument since 1947.

The theatre was founded in 1948 and began in a private apartment before relocating to this villa, which was built in 1829. The house itself was previously home to a ship captain and received protected monument status in 1947.

The theatre's name comes from its 1948 origins in Helmuth Gmelin's attic apartment in Harvestehude. Gmelin's acting students often gave their debuts there, and later his daughter Gerda Gmelin ran the house as director, manager and actress. Since 2004 the villa has hosted theatre, concerts and readings, and the neighbouring Hochschule für Musik und Theater uses it for rehearsals and seminars.

The theatre occupies the villa at Alsterchaussee 30 in Harvestehude, near the Alster. The 1952 conversion was designed by Georg Wellhausen, and the building has been a protected monument since 1947. The neighbouring Hochschule für Musik und Theater Hamburg uses the rooms for rehearsals, performances and seminars, so check which event is on before visiting.

The villa was bought in 2003 by a Hamburg entrepreneur for just under 1.5 million euros after a bid by Helmut Greve was rejected. He lowered the cellar floor by one metre to create usable rooms and converted the roof into a flat with its own entrance.