Spieldose. Mechanisches Theater München
Spieldose is an amateur theatre with a focus on puppetry and object theatre often combined with acting, dance, light show and music.
History
Founded in 1955 by four students of architecture, the Spieldose moved into a theatre venue at Künstlerhaus located at Lenbachplatz in the city centre of Munich in 1961. In 2014 they lost their home of 53 years and moved to a performance space in Werksviertel Mitte near Ostbahnhof in Munich. After the end of their rental contract in 2019 they performed at different venues, including the open air amphitheatre in the English Garden where they annually stage their traditional version of Die Geyerwally (The Vulture Wally) - piece based on a popular novel by the same name written in 1840 by Wilhelmine von Hillern. Free admission is a principle at Spieldose.
Repertoire
They stage mostly their own pieces and original productions. The repertoire stretches from funny pieces to surreal performances, from parodies of crime stories to dadaist dialogue.
- 1957: Ein Mensch (A Human Being) - a marionette pantomime with music
- 1987: Die Nachtigall (The Nightingale) - a marionette play after the fairy tale The Chinese Nightingale
- 1990: Dio 2.0 Konfusionen (Dio 2.0 Confusions) - black theatre with dance
- 1997: Picknick im All (Picknick in Space) - marionette and object theatre
- 1997: Spuihansl. A Bayer gegn Dod und Deifi (Johnny the Player. A Bavarian Against Death and Devil) - Bavarian dialect marionette play with music
- 2009: Die haarsträubenden Abenteuer des Walter Sack (The Hair-raising Adventures of Walter Sack) - puppet play
- 2009: Don Giovanni auf dem Dorfe (Don Giovanni in the Village) - hand puppets
- 2011: Von einem der auszog das Gruseln zu lernen (One that went into the world to learn to be frightened) - puppet play with actors
- 2015: Wer dreimal in den Spiegel schaut (Looking three times into the mirror) - hand puppets
Die Geyerwally adaptations (The Vulture Wally, since 2005)
- 2013: Die Geyerwally - Arabische Nächte (Arabian Nights)
- 2014: Die Geyerwally - Ermittlungen im Sumpf (Investigations in the Swamp)
- 2015: Die Geyerwally - Welcome dahoam (Welcome at Home)
- 2016: Die Geyerwally - A Tale of Pride and Prejudice
- 2017: Die Geyerwally - Minne, Macht & mut'ge Maiden (Love, Power and Courageous Girls)
- 2018: Die G-EY Wall-Y - Die dunkle Bedrohung (The Dark Danger)
- 2019: Die Geyerwally - In der Ötztalklinik (In the Ötztal Clinic)
- 2021/2022: Die Geyer-Vally - Blutrausch in Transtyrolien (Blood Thirst in Transtyrolia)
- 2023/2024: gAIerwally - Am Rande der Intelligenz (On the Edge of Intelligence)