Fifty years after Bertolt Brecht's death, the Admiralspalast, a noted 1920s revue theatre here, will be given a new lease of life in early August when a new production of the Dreigroschenoper ("The Threepenny Opera") will be premiered

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Admiralspalast, that made Brecht famous, to reopen
DPA

Berlin, July 19 (DPA) Fifty years after Bertolt Brecht's death, the Admiralspalast, a noted 1920s revue theatre here, will be given a new lease of life in early August when a
new production of the Dreigroschenoper ("The Threepenny Opera") will be premiered.

The play catapulted playwright Brecht and lyricist Kurt Weill to world fame overnight following its premiere at the Schiffbauerdamm theatre, now the Berliner Ensemble, in
1928.

The 2006 production of the "Threepenny Opera", which opens on August 11, is a brainchild of the Austrian Burg Theatre actor and movie star Klaus Maria Brandauer.

The lead singer Campino, from the German punk band Die Toten Hosen, will play the role of London underworld king Mackie Messer. Hollywood actor Gottfried John is set to
play Mr Peachum and Katrin Sass of "Goodbye Lenin" movie fame, will play Mrs Peachum.

The musical seems destined to attract plenty of attention. The Admiralspalast is just a short distance from Brecht's Berliner Ensemble theatre.

Brecht and Weill both fled Nazi Germany early on, but the playwright returned from exile in the US in 1951, while Weill never returned, dying suddenly in New York in April
1949.

It was largely due to Brecht that some of the most innovative, exciting theatre was produced in both east and west Germany during the Cold War years of the 1950s and
'60s after communist authorities gave the Augsburg-born playwright the opportunity to create the Berliner Ensemble out of the Schiffbauerdamm theatre in 1949.

The theatre proved a pivotal source of energy and remained a fund of artistic vitality even after his early death in 1956.

The Admiralspalast is currently undergoing intensive restoration after years of closure, with builders involved in a desperate race to get the theatre finished in time for the
premiere on August 11 - three days ahead of the 50th anniversary of Brecht's death. From then, the musical can be seen from Tuesdays to Sundays until Sep 24.

Brandauer, an actor with a strong following in the German capital, is thrilled that the Admiralspalast has been chosen for the new production of the Brecht-Weill masterpiece.

"Brecht," he said, "although born in Augsburg, belonged to Germany's capital as a playwright and writer."

At a press conference at the Admiralspalast theatre, the actor said he had recently had a lengthy talk with Brecht's daughter Barbara in Berlin, but they had very different
opinions on the playwright who, was regarded as a "Commie sympathizer", in the 1940s and '50s.

"But she was fair in saying she accepted my right to hold such views," he said without giving details.

As for the theatre premises, he said: "You see the condition of the house. The work is at an advanced stage, but one doesn't always see much happening. We work and
rehearse 12 to 14 hours a day despite the problems."

Brandauer, 63, left no doubt the production's first night would go ahead as planned despite any difficulties.

"We have no disagreements. We find time for a beer, wine or a sausage and even managed to watch all the World Cup matches on TV," he crowed.

First opened in 1911 as a theatre, cafe house and ice-revue arena on the Friedrichstrasse, opposite the same-named railway station, the building was revamped in 1923 and
became the Admiralspalast revue theatre.

Many of German's big name dance and theatre personalities appeared in lavish shows there in the late 1920s and early 1930s.

But by 1939, Nazi propaganda minister Goebbels ordered the theatre's reconstruction. It was turned into a more classical, conservative establishment.

Later, the venue was used for high-level communist get-togethers.

Then in 1955, its title was changed to Metropol Theater in the Admiralspalast. Once the Berlin Wall came down, the theatre lost more and more of its support. In 1997, the
staff was dismissed and the theatre closed.

In July 2003, local city businessman, Falk Walter, and three associates, agreed to modernise the premises, and reopen the Admiralspalast as a theatre and entertainment
venue.

At present, the theatre complex walls are a mass of scaffolding and plastic drapes, except for the theatre facade, which is rich with ornate 1920s stone carving.

--DPA

Indo-Asian News Service