Culture in Schwerin: Mecklenburg State Theater

Author: Harald Braun
Published: March 11, 2025

Curtain up at the Mecklenburg State Theater in Schwerin, © MV-T/Tiemann — ©© MV-T/Tiemann

Everyone who lives in Schwerin and the surrounding area has seen it at least once. Completed between 1883 and 1886, the Mecklenburg State Theatre is an architectural eye-catcher and an absolute must-see when it comes to culture in Schwerin: with its neo-Renaissance façade and neo-Baroque auditorium with 540 seats, it was one of the most progressive theater buildings of its era. Fun fact: Even back then, the theater supplied its electric light - a sensation! – from its own electricity plant.

From the outside, the Mecklenburg State Theater is still an impressive monument today and an important factor in the cultural life of the entire region. But who knows what goes on inside such a building? Who knows what it takes to ensure that all the little wheels mesh together and that such a logistically complex enterprise works every day? After all, the repertoire has to be filled out, every performance prepared, every stage set appropriately designed and constructed. How does such a difficult theater cosmos actually work?

The comedian Heinz Erhard once quipped that the authorities are like the theater: "A few work, but most people watch." Sounds funny, but it's not entirely true. Anyone who has the pleasure of looking behind the scenes at the theater in Schwerin learns first of all that there is a lot of magic behind the scenes - and a lot of work. Tina Koball, theater educator at the Mecklenburg State Theater, knows the incredulous amazement of her visitors when she guides them through the mysterious inner workings of her workplace.

Theater teacher Tina Koball can tell a story about many props., © MV-T/Tiemann — ©© MV-T/Tiemann

Amazement in the prop room

Over five million objects are waiting to be used in the Schwerin Theater

The props alone! Around five million items are stored there, from fake beards to real busts, from pinball machines to the oversized town hall bell - which, by the way, will be making its grand entrance in the performance of The Shieldbearers;The Shielded Citizens“ had its grand entrance as part of the 2021 Schlossfestspiele, until it was stowed away again in the theater's wondrous prop catacombs. "Who keeps track of everything here?" visitors ask again and again and can hardly get enough of this magnificent, colorful inventory palace. These are moments that Tina Koball particularly likes: „It simply thrills me when I experience people here who have no real idea about theater yet“, says the theater educator, „especially when they go home afterwards feeling very inspired.“

This is an important part of her job, which she has been doing at the Mecklenburg State Theater since the 2015/2016 season: Introducing young, interested people to the plays in the repertoire, but also to the institution of theater in general. In other words: at best, to awaken a love of theater in all its artistic and logistical facets. Trained as a theater teacher in Osnabrück, the Greifswald native gained important experience in practical theater work with children and young people in Bilbao, Spain, and later in Dusseldorf, Germany, before returning home six years ago. She heads the StarterClub in Schwerin, has also been in charge of the Golden TheaterClub since the 2019 season and took over the entire management of the Theatre Education, Mediation and Participation department in the 2020/2021 season.

Not that hard to create if you have thin sheet metal and padded steel balls available., © MV-T/Tiemann — ©© MV-T/Tiemann

She provides visitors with insights into the world of Schwerin's theater that you wouldn't even suspect as an audience member in front of the stage. Anyone who wanders through the catacombs with Tina Koball or her colleagues will learn, for example, that the iron theater curtain, which separates the stage and auditorium in the event of a fire, is as heavy as two small elephants; a total of five tons – or that with the help of thin metal sheets and many balls hanging from strings, you can create a powerful theatrical thunder that can be heard in the rows of spectators right up to the last seat.

Or how the musicians work in the orchestra pit and the lighting technicians illuminate just under the roof of the theater. And that the theater's workshops are like a combination of carpentry, tailoring and ballet school. After all, who would have thought that the dancers in the theater ensemble would be doing their training pirouettes in a studio right next to the tailors?

Tina Koball can explain exactly how a theater curtain is raised. And what it weighs.

Theater guide Tina Koball explains what's on tap for the summer: Shakespeare's "As You Like It."

No area is off limits when Tina Koball points out the intricacies and special features of the various buildings on her tours of the Mecklenburgisches Sechssparten-Haus and also reveals some corners that may seem rather mysterious at first glance. For example, she draws attention to the vestibule with its striking wings, the tastefully furnished foyer café with its unusual cross-ribbed vault and the pair of Tuscan columns. The grand ducal box with its magnificent gilded stucco work in the rococo style also attracts a great deal of interest during the longer tour through the winding corridors of the Mecklenburg State Theater. These detailed insights show how closely the traditional theater is linked to culture in Schwerin and the special place it occupies in the cultural life of the city.

The view from above on the stage between spotlights, cables and ropes, © MV-T/Tiemann — ©© MV-T/Tiemann

Culture in Schwerin: From the theater's bag of tricks

Three kinds of fake blood for "Dracula" and co.

Tina Koball's enjoyment of her job is clear to see, for example when she talks about the lighting technology on the open-air stage in the castle courtyard on the day of the premiere of the annual Schwerin Castle Festival. The castle festival has been a successful fixture in the cultural life of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern since 1993. After two decades, the newly renovated inner courtyard of the castle has now also re-established itself as a festival venue. In 2018, the production of „Dracula“ played its way into the hearts of the audience, and the following year it succeeded with a mix of romance and humor in „Cyrano de Bergerac“.

On the subject of Dracula, Tina Koball also comes up with something very interesting: „There are three different types of fake blood in the theater, which are used as required.“ For 2022, the next open-air spectacle is on the program at the Schwerin State Theater: with „As you like it“ Shakespeare is given. It starts on June 23, 2022. Until then, Tina Koball and her colleagues will continue to do their best to ensure that all interested children, young people and adults get to know and experience the magic of theater.