Schauspiel Leipzig brings We songs” – new season starts today!

Schauspiel Leipzig brings We songs” – new season starts today!

Today director Enrico Lübbe presented the program for the 2025/26 season at Schauspiel Leipzig. Under the motto “We-Songs”, the new season will be characterized by social issues and conflicts, which will be dealt with in premieres as well as in revivals and repertoire dates. Advance sales began on June 19th and offer visitors the opportunity to look forward to a varied program.

The season will be dominated by the interim venue ag(o)ra, as the large stage will remain closed until the end of October due to technical work. The conclusion of this interim period is set with Shakespeare's “The Tempest” (director: Adewale Teodros Adebisi). From autumn onwards, eleven repertoire pieces will return to the big stage, including classics such as “Arsenic and Lace Cap” and “Woyzeck”.

Social issues in focus

The season's motto, “What defines us as a society?” encourages us to focus on stories and narratives that shape society. The pieces not only address cultural diversity, but also questions of “we” and the associated challenges. Director Pia Richter brings Shakespeare into the play “What You Want” with elements of Taylor Swift. Nuran David Calis will direct Schiller's “Maid of Orleans”, while Thomas Köck is working on “German Fairy Tales”, a commissioned work for Schauspiel Leipzig.

There are also two fairy tales for families in the program: “Andersen’s Fairy Tales” and “The Cold Heart”. From February 2025, premieres will be presented on the Grand Stage that combine contemporary and past themes. Lukas Rietzschel's “The Girschkarten” addresses the longing for the past. Lübbe directs the film himself and places the modern family in the context of Chekhov's “Cherry Orchard”.

Diverse projects and collaborations

A special highlight of the coming season is the newly founded ChorAlle project, which promotes a dialogue between the independent scene and the city theater. As part of this residency, a festival called “4+1” will take place in June 2026, bringing together the voices of young dramatic talent. Other programs, such as “Bu sözler bizim – The words belong to us” by Yade Yasemin Önder, will deal with the meaning of the past and identity.

Schauspiel Leipzig continues to strive for inclusive theater practice. The offerings include audio description, German sign language and comprehensive child care. Highlights of the season are also the monthly theater day with discounted performances and the introduction of the Schauspiel-Card 100, which grants free entry to all venues.

The first part of the 2025/26 season begins with a pleasing visitor count of 96,000 visitors by the end of March 2025, which corresponds to an increase of around 6,000 visits and an occupancy rate of 82.9 percent. 15,000 visitors were counted in the interim venue ag(o)ra and the smaller venues, with an occupancy rate of 81.3 percent. Further information and dates are available online on the websites leipziginfo and schauspiel-leipzig.