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from Wed, 11/27/2019

"Unique training and event location"

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The new cultural heart of Barmbek is taking shape: On November 27, the topping-out ceremony for the future theater center was celebrated at Wiesendamm 26
In a celebratory mood (from left to right): Prof. Martin Zierold (Dean KMM), Prof. Sabina Dhein (Director Theaterakademie), University President Prof. Elmar Lampson, Katharina Fegebank (BGM2), Senator Dr. Carsten Brosda and Jan Zunke (Sprinkenhof GmbH) © Dieter Hellfeuer/HfMT

Things are moving forward! A new theater center is currently being built on Wiesendamm, which will be home to the Junges SchauSpielHaus, the Theaterakademie and the Institute for Culture and Media Management at the University of Music and Drama (HfMT). On behalf of the City of Hamburg, Sprinkenhof GmbH is building around 9,000 square meters of new space for performances, rehearsals, teaching and research in the halls of the former Heidenreich & Harbeck machine tool factory. The shell of the first conversions has now been completed.

The Senate set the course for the new cultural heart of Barmbek in September 2018. Today, Katharina Fegebank, Senator for Science, Research and Equality, Dr. Carsten Brosda, Senator for Culture and Media, Martin Görge, Managing Director of Sprinkenhof GmbH, Klaus Schumacher, Director of the Junges SchauSpielHaus and Prof. Elmar Lampson, President of the HfMT, celebrated the topping-out ceremony for the building together with the construction companies. The future tenants are expected to be able to start fitting out the building themselves from fall 2020 and gradually fill the space with life. The project cost around 36.4 million euros. Together with the new premises of the Freie Theaterzentrum Wiese eG in the immediate vicinity, this will create a new cultural center in the heart of Barmbek.

Katharina Fegebank, Senator for Science, Research and Equality"The Wiesendamm Theater Centre will be a unique and highly attractive cultural and study location that will improve the excellent training of future artists. The close proximity of the Theaterakademie, the Institute for Culture and Media Management and the Junges SchauSpielHaus offers excellent opportunities for joint projects for all those involved - and strengthens cultural life in Barmbek. The interplay between training, studies and performance also promotes artistic exchange and increases Hamburg's appeal as a cultural and scientific metropolis. Students and theater fans alike will benefit from this."

Dr. Carsten Brosda, Senator for Culture and Media"A completely new and diverse cultural center is being created in the former machine tool factory on Wiesendamm. Together with other cultural institutions in Barmbek, it will not only shape the district, but the entire cultural city of Hamburg. This successful development was only possible because many people involved at different levels worked together creatively towards one goal. This collaboration can generate completely new and inspiring impulses for the city. In future, culture and science will find excellent working conditions and, above all, long-term development prospects at Wiesendamm."

Jan Zunke, Managing Director of Sprinkenhof GmbH"As the developer and owner of the property, we are delighted to have a new and, above all, sustainable use for the building of the former iron foundry and the neighborhood with the Junges SchauSpielHaus and the Theaterakademie, thus contributing to the cultural development of the district."

Klaus Schumacher, director of the Junges SchauSpielHaus"We can hardly wait to move into the new theater on Wiesendamm. After a period of interim solutions, the Junges SchauSpielHaus will move into a wonderful building that not only meets current conditions, but also offers new opportunities for theater for young audiences. Barmbek is a great location with lots of families and schools. The immediate surroundings will be very inspiring and we hope that the new hotspot for young theater art will attract many Hamburg residents."

Prof. Elmar Lampson, President of the University of Music and Drama"Since the Theaterakademie was founded in 2005, it has been our goal to unite all theater-related courses of study in one building. The fact that our Institute for Cultural and Media Management will also be moving into the building is of outstanding importance for the training in view of the resulting opportunities for intensive cooperation and interesting synergy effects. The Theaterzentrum am Wiesendamm will be a unique training and event venue with great public appeal. I would like to thank the Senate of the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg and the Thörl Foundation for finally making this goal a reality."

With the relocation of the Theaterakademie and the Junges SchauSpielHaus from their former joint location in Gaußstraße to Wiesendamm in Barmbek, a new venue for young performing arts is being created. The institutions will have a long-term perspective and the shared location will continue to facilitate creative exchange. In addition, the Institute for Culture and Media Management (KMM) will also be located on Wiesendamm in future, creating valuable synergies for students, such as joint courses.

The theater center is located in the immediate vicinity of the new Freie Theaterzentrum Wiese eG, with additional performance and rehearsal spaces, as well as Kampnagel, the Zinnschmelze, the Museum der Arbeit and the Hamburger Puppentheater. This multitude of cultural institutions enables a completely new cultural exchange between different disciplines.

The Junges SchauSpielHaus Hamburg
The Junges SchauSpielHaus Hamburg is one of the most renowned children's and youth theaters in the German-speaking world. Founded in 2005 as an independent division of the Deutsches SchauSpielHaus, its productions reach a large audience and have received numerous awards. The current venue is the large rehearsal stage in the Deutsches SchauSpielHaus.
In the new venue on Wiesendamm, two stages and two rehearsal stages as well as workshops, offices, storage areas and the necessary social rooms will be built for the Junges SchauSpielHaus on a total of around 3,500 square meters, of which a good 3,000 square meters will be on the first floor. According to current plans, the stages will have around 170 and 70 seats respectively. The technical equipment will enable the optimal use of artistic resources such as stage design, lighting, sound and video. All rooms accessible to the public will be barrier-free.
The new location will thus create the conditions for the further development and expansion of the artistic and educational theater offerings. In the future, extensive participatory projects can be carried out, and there is also space for further educational or inclusive theater projects and open formats such as youth theater clubs.

The Theaterakademie Hamburg of the University of Music and Drama
The HfMT's theater academy was founded more than ten years ago and is one of the most renowned training centers for directing, acting, opera singing and dramaturgy in Germany. At the new location on Wiesendamm, almost 5,800 square meters of space will be created for transdisciplinary, self-organized and research-based learning.

With two stages and five rehearsal stages, the directing courses will have the necessary space to rehearse for study projects and final productions and to present their first productions to an audience. The drama department will also have its own studios on an old mezzanine level of the hall. Rooms with appropriate acoustic equipment will be built for the master's degree course in opera. The stages and rehearsal stages will be equipped with new stage, lighting, sound and video technology to enable artistic exploration and work with different media.

The Institute for Cultural and Media Management at the University of Music and Drama
The KMM was founded in 1987 as the Institute for Cultural Management, making it the oldest institution of its kind in Germany. Today, the Institute for Cultural and Media Management offers an undergraduate Bachelor's degree and a postgraduate Master's degree by distance learning, with courses taking place in over 20 German cities. In the heart of Hamburg, a Master's degree can also be obtained in four semesters of on-campus study. With over 500 distance learning students and around 45 face-to-face students, the KMM Institute is not only the most traditional but also the largest provider of cultural management courses in Germany today. In teaching and research, the institute deals with all aspects of cultural management, such as project management, marketing, financing, etc. A particular focus is on the topics of leadership, innovation and digital transformation. The close proximity to the Theaterakademie creates previously unimagined opportunities for cooperation between artistic and cultural management practice directly in its own building.

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