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New Productions of Kurt Weill's The Threepenny Opera in Berlin and Vienna

Jul. 15, 2021

The legendary Berliner Ensemble, founded by Brecht himself, and the Theater am Josefstadt, the oldest still performing theater in Vienna, are debuting new productions of Kurt Weill's Die Dreigroschenoper during the upcoming 2021-22 season. We have the scoop on production details, just as theaters begin reopening performance halls to eager audiences.

A highly anticipated new production of Die Dreigroschenoper opens in August at the Berliner Ensemble, presented in the same theater where it first premiered in 1928. Directed by Barrie Kosky and conducted by Adam Benzwi, the new production supplants the long-running Robert Wilson production at the Theater am Schiffbauerdamm. This will be the fifth production of the Weill-Brecht-Hauptmann classic at Schiffbauerdamm since the world premiere, which features members of the Berliner Ensemble playing the iconic roles of Mackie (Nico Holonics), Polly (Cynthia Micas), Tiger Brown (Kathrin Wehlisch), and Jenny (Bettina Hoppe). Originally planned for January 2021 but postponed due to the pandemic, Die Dreigroschenoper opens Berliner Ensemble’s next season on August 13, with two previews on August 11 and 12. Find tickets and additional dates here.  

More exciting news this year: Aufstieg und Fall der Stadt Mahagonny returns to the stage of the Komische Oper Berlin on October 2 in a new production directed by Barrie Kosky – perhaps the first time that one director will have productions of both Die Dreigroschenoper and Aufstieg und Fall der Stadt Mahagonny running simultaneously in the same city. Kosky will also team with Katharine Mehrling for two performances of their all-Weill recital at Komische Oper on September 5 and October 24.



Barrie Kosky’s Die Dreigroschenoper opens in August at the Berliner Ensemble (Photo: Jörg Brüggemann)

The Theater in der Josefstadt in Vienna will open its new production of Die Dreigroschenoper in September after previewing to sold-out houses in June. This major staging springs from the same creative team that mounted Lenya Story in 2017 in the same Kammerspiele theater: director Torsten Fischer, music director Christian Frank, and Dramaturg Herbert Schäfer.


(Trailer: The Theater in der Josefstadt presents Kurt Weill and Bertolt Brecht's Die Dreigroschenoper)


To learn more about Kurt Weill, visit kwf.org or schott-music.com.

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