Sophienstrasse 18
10178 Berlin-Mitte

Sophiensæle | Freies Theater in Berlin

Saison 24/25
Performance Ticket Premiere
Performance Ticket Premiere
Performance Ticket
Performance Ticket
Performance Ticket
10:00–13:00
Niederkirchnerstraße 5
Protest
Performance Ticket
Performance Ticket
Performance Ticket
Performance Ticket
11:00
Hochzeitssaal
Workshop Ticket
20:00
Hochzeitssaal
Dance Ticket
Performance Ticket
21:00
Hochzeitssaal
Dance Ticket
17:00
Treffpunkt: Kasse/Box office
Performance Ticket
21:00
Hochzeitssaal
Dance Ticket
Performance Ticket
Performance Ticket
Performance Ticket
Dance Ticket Premiere
Dance Ticket
Dance Ticket
Dance Ticket
Performance Ticket
Performance Ticket
Performance Ticket Premiere
Performance Ticket
21:00
Festsaal
Performance Ticket
Performance Ticket
21:00
Festsaal
Performance Ticket
Performance Ticket
Prevent cultural cuts!
Design ohne Titel

The Sophiensæle are a theatre with concept funding. This means that we reapply for a temporary grant from the Berlin Senate every four years. As a concept-funded house, we are part of a group of 16 smaller cultural venues in Berlin.

Together, we stage over 2,000 performances a year for over 250,000 visitors, with limited human and financial resources. The houses are, of course, also a workplace for many people: a total of around 500 colleagues work here. In addition, in 2023, for example, we worked together with around 4,200 artists.

Thanks to our distribution across almost all 12 Berlin districts, we are an important part of Berlin’s cultural landscape as concept-funded houses. We contribute to the diversity of cultural offerings in the neighborhoods and work together to create democratic access to culture.

For most of the concept-funded houses, the 10% cut in the cultural budget announced by the Berlin Senate means much more than a 10% cut in the program. The reduction of institutional subsidies, together with the reduction of funding for individual artists, groups and projects, sets off a chain reaction. This will lead to a meltdown of cultural offerings in Berlin. Functioning structures will be destroyed, the cultural offering will be thinned out, we will lose colleagues and fear the closure of venues.

The Sophiensæle therefore calls for the damage that would be done to Berlin’s cultural landscape by the announced cut to be prevented. We are participating in the joint day of action #BerlinIstKultur on October 16th together with other Berlin cultural institutions. We also ask you to sign the petition of the Landesverband des Deutschen Bühnenvereins and the open letter to the Governing Mayor of Berlin Kai Wegner, Finance Senator Stefan Evers and Culture Senator Joe Chialo here.

Save the date: On November 13th at 10:00 am, a demonstration against the cultural cuts will take place in front of the Abgeordnetenhaus Berlin, Niederkirchnerstraße 5, 10117 Berlin, as part of #BerlinIstKultur!