Initiated by
Ernst von Possart, the theatre was built in the
Prinzregentenstrasse as a festival hall for the operas of
Richard Wagner near an area where a similar project of King
Ludwig II had failed some decades before. Named after
Luitpold, Prince Regent of Bavaria, the building was designed by
Max Littmann and opened 21 August 1901 with a production of
Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg by Richard Wagner. Like the
Bayreuth Festspielhaus, the auditorium was designed to Wagner’s specifications, but an
amphitheater has replaced the
loges. After the destruction of the
Nationaltheater during
World War II, the Prinzregententheater housed the
Bavarian State Opera from 1944 to 1963 even though it also suffered damage during the war which was not repaired until 1958. Since its renovation in 1988, the Prinzregententheater, with 1122 seats, has served also for the Bavarian Staatsschauspiel and now houses the Bavarian Theatre Academy founded by
August Everding. Another theatre in the building, the
Akademietheater or
Academy Theatre, seats 300.
Some famous world premieres • 12 June 1917,
Palestrina by
Hans Pfitzner • 27 March 1952,
Weg zum Licht ballet by
Victor Gsovsky with music by
Georges Auric • 22 July 1952, ballet
Pas de cœur by Victor Gsovsky /
Gottfried von Einem • 25 February 1954, new edition of
Die Bernauerin, by
Carl Orff • 29 March 1956,
Don Juan de Manara by
Henri Tomasi • 11 August 1957,
Die Harmonie der Welt by
Paul Hindemith • 16 February 1960, ballet
Danza by Heinz Rosen /
Werner Egk • 1961, ballet '''' by Heinz Rosen /
Wilhelm Killmayer == References ==