Heard the one about the theater that was once a margarine storage? That’s the Leibniz Theater for you. Right here on Kommandanturstraße. It’s a place with a past richer than any stage production.
The Leibniz Theater wasn’t always the Leibniz Theater. It started as the Werkstatt-Galerie Calenberg. Wolfgang Werner founded it in 1981. He initially used the space to sell pottery among other things. But theater slowly took over.
Before pottery and plays this building housed a stone printing shop. Look up you can still see the original pulley systems. They once lowered heavy printing plates to the basement below. Even earlier before the war it was a bowling alley. Quite the transformation.
Wolfgang Werner founded the Calenberger Kabarettwochen in 1984. Big names graced this stage like Rüdiger Hoffmann and Volker Pispers. Even Erika-Maria Lehmann the wife of an opera house director brought her amateur group Die Tribüne here in 1993.
In 2016 Joachim Hieke took over from Werner. On November 14 2016 the theater was renamed Leibniz Theater after Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz. Leibniz was a famous philosopher. The renaming happened on the 300th anniversary of his death. After renovations the Leibniz Theater reopened on January 20 2017.
The Leibniz Theater quickly became known for its intimate setting. It only has about 85 seats. Each year it hosted over 300 events. These included performances by local and international artists. Newcomers comedians and musicians also found a stage here.
The theater even produced its own shows. “Haarmann lädt zum Dinner” premiered in 2017. “Männer im Baumarkt” followed in 2018. “Verständnisvoll Missverstehen” debuted in 2019.
However the Leibniz Theater faced controversy in late 2022. It was reported that the theater hosted events for Reichsbürger a far-right movement. This led to public outcry and some artists cut ties with the theater.
Due to the controversy and lack of events Joachim Hieke announced the closure of the Leibniz Theater. The final day was October 1 2023.
So as we stand here remember the many lives of this building. From printing press to bowling alley to margarine storage. Then a theater of comedy and controversy. The Leibniz Theater may be gone but its story echoes in these streets.