Sophiensæle
Sophiensæle is one of Berlin’s most important centers for the independent performing arts. It consists of two historic halls, the Festsaal (Festival Hall) and the Hochzeitsaal (Wedding Hall), as well as the former canteen.
Built between 1904 and 1905 as a craftsmen’s clubhouse, the building was originally dedicated to the education of workers, but soon developed into a meeting place for the revolutionary Left. Rosa Luxemburg and Karl Liebknecht, Erich Mühsam and Clara Zetkin spoke here; and it was here that Erich Mühsam warned against the rise of fascism in Germany in the early 1920s. After the NSDAP came to power, the craftsmen’s association was hastily banned and the clubhouse closed. A few years later, the rooms of the Sophiensæle–mainly the Festsaal–were misused during the Nazi dictatorship as a forced labor camp to produce propaganda leaflets for the fascist regime. Traces of this can still be seen on the walls of Sophiensæle today.
In the GDR years, the stage workshops of the Maxim Gorki Theater occupied the space until, in the autumn of 1996, Sasha Waltz and Jochen Sandig, together with Jo Fabian, Holger Zebu Kluth and Dirk Cieslak, reimagined Sophiensæle as an independent theater—by artists, for artists. Since then, Sophiensæle has become a platform for contemporary performing arts, embracing diverse artistic practices beyond genre boundaries and showcasing both emerging and established voices, with a blend of local and international perspectives.
In 2011, parts of the complex were painstakingly renovated. This partial renovation preserved much of the space’s original character, allowing the rich history of the building complex to remain palpable throughout. Our open spaces, with their flexible configuration, are an ideal place for the needs of the independent performing arts. Here, artists find a platform to reflect on social developments from multiple perspectives and to question them artistically. A crucial factor in establishing a dialogue is the exchange of ideas—not only with the cities society, our audience, but also among the artists themselves. Sophiensæle offers Berlin artists, with their diverse international ties, an artistic laboratory in which they can test and present new ideas. Sophiensæle set thematic focusses, which take shape through annually changing curated festivals, series, and programming bringing international and local perspectives into exchange. The production house also cooperates with a large and diverse list of local, national, and international partners.
As a forward-thinking institution whose doors are open to all, Sophiensæle is in a constant state of change and evolution. A central concern of ours is to allow audiences and artists multiple points of access to our work. Sophiensæle works hard to cater to a range of communities and their needs, striving to remove barriers in all areas. This includes for example regular audio descriptions, relaxed performances and events in German Sign Language, as well as self-critical reflection in relation to our production structures and program design, e.g. within the in the Berlin network Making a Difference.
From the start of the 2024/25 season Sophiensæle will have an artistic advisory board at its side. It is important to us to sustainably integrate the perspectives of artists into our structures in order to further develop the artistic vision of our space in a mutual exchange, to review production conditions for artists and to strengthen the cultural-political situation of Sophiensæle. Four artists with different focuses and practices are appointed for two years at a time. The members for the years 2024–2026 are Simone Dede Ayivi, Isabel Lewis, Enad Marouf and Hendrik Quast.
Additionally, Sophiensæle has a number of measures in place to promote young aesthetics. For example, Sophiensæle is the organizer of Tanztage Berlin and a founding member of the international production platform Freischwimmen. (2025)
- Sophiensæle
- Sophienstraße 18
- 10178 Berlin
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