The Passion Play Theater

At the Pentecost of 1634, the people of Oberammergau fulfilled their vow to perform the tragedy of the Passion of Christ every ten years for the first time.  They first set up a stage over the fresh graves of the victims of the Black Death.  This location was retained until 1820.

In the course of the 17th and 18th centuries, the original simple wooden structure of the stage was equipped with sets and stage mechanics.  In 1815, Johann Nikolais Unhoch carried out a thorough overhaul.  Not until 1830 was the stage constructed at the site of the present-day Passion Play Theatre.

The Reconstruction in 1890

In 1890, a reconstruction based on the old building was carried out, adopting the plans of Carl Lautenschläger.  The structure at this time consisted of six steel arch supports in half-timbering.

The building was given a basilica-like character by means of an attached wooden stand construction.  Finally, for the Passion Plays in 1900 the auditorium was covered over by an iron truss structure consisting of six high arches existing until today.  It opens forwards onto the open-air stage.

The new theatre with an open-air stage in 1930

The new construction of the open-air stage was designed by Georg Johann Lang and Raimund Lang for the 1930 Passion Play year.  The artistic concentration of stage sets was on keeping with the clear, ascetic, monumental style of the stage area previously built entirely of wood.  In the process of enlarging the auditorium the original seats, consisting of simple rows of benches, were also replaced by theatre seating.  The rows of benches now offered a seating capacity for an audience of 5,200.

After the Passion Plays in 1990, it was decided that an extensive renovation of the interior and the facade was necessary.  In addition, the comfort in the auditorium had to be improved and the stage techniques had to be modernized.  In September 1997, the villagers were asked in a public decision to choose one of the three proposals that had been submitted.

Within two years,  the building was completely transformed: the seating was renewed, floor heating was installed, the cloakrooms were extended, the foyer was made accessible to wheelchair users and exhibition areas added, the facade was renovated, new fire prevention measures for the steel and wooden components were taken, the toilet facilities were improved and the stage techniques modernized. Altogether, the building costs amounted to 15 million marks (about $9.8 million - Germany has since converted to the Euro).  The official opening took place on 26th September 1999, at the same time as the Plague Vow was renewed.

The newly renovated theatre, with its 4720 covered seats, now offers a world-wide audience maximum comfort and absolute safety.  Thus Oberammergau has lived up to its reputation as the major location for performances of the Passion Play.

And the lavish reconstruction has had another positive effect: in the years between the performances the Passion Play Theater regularly provides a suitable setting for major cultural events.