Leibniz Theatre, Theatre venue in Mitte, Hanover, Germany
Leibniz Theatre is a performance venue in Hanover's Mitte district featuring two stages across three levels and a cocktail bar. The space hosts theatrical productions, cabaret shows, music concerts, seminars, and private events.
The building housed a stone printing works in the early 20th century, then a bowling alley before World War II and a margarine store afterwards. In 1981 Wolfgang Werner founded the Werkstatt-Galerie Calenberg there, initially selling pottery; theatre use grew and in 1984 he started the Calenberger Kabarettwochen. On 14 November 2016, the 300th anniversary of Leibniz's death, it was renamed Leibniz Theater, reopening on 20 January 2017 after renovation. It closed on 1 October 2023.
The theatre's name, adopted on 14 November 2016, the 300th anniversary of Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz's death, replaced Werkstatt-Galerie Calenberg. Its founder Wolfgang Werner had launched the Calenberger Kabarettwochen there in 1984, and guests included Rüdiger Hoffmann, Helmut Ruge, Volker Pispers and Rainald Grebe. From 1993 the director Erika-Maria Lehmann, wife of former opera director Hans-Peter Lehmann, used the stage for her amateur group Die Tribüne.
The theatre closed on 1 October 2023, so the rooms at Kommandaturstraße 7, corner of Molthanstraße in Calenberger Neustadt are no longer open for performances. The venue held around 85 seats and was not wheelchair accessible. Visitors heading there should check the current use of the building before making the trip.
The building began as a stone printing works; the pulley hoists used to lower heavy lithographic plates to the basement store remain in the theatre level. Before the Second World War a bowling alley occupied the premises, and after the war it served as a margarine warehouse. The theatre closed on 1 October 2023.
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