Horrific sums are in circulation. Some speak of 350 million euros that the general renovation of the Nuremberg Opera House will cost, others of 500, and still others of 800 million euros. Others, on the other hand, get upset about such numbers, as they are mainly based on comparisons with reference houses – after all, the concrete planning in Nuremberg has not even begun. But nobody denies that the renovation costs are likely to be staggering. Why actually? A tour of the house at least suggests it.
Maybe you start in the stage machinery, underbody. At the Staatstheater Nürnberg – by far the largest multi-branch theater in Bavaria – it is set in motion partly by hand. At least in the opera house. A sight that would make the heart of any theater historian leap, especially if he is concerned with the 19th century. Anyone who has the grace of no longer having correctly functioning sensory nerves at their disposal will not smell much down there. Everyone else complains of a putrid stench, in summer it should smell like a sewage pit. There are places in this house that have to be cleaned every year because of mold. How can that be? It is probably due to the subway construction a good 50 years ago, right next to the house. Since then you have had a groundwater problem.
When it opened in 1905, it was very modern
Hundreds of millions of euros for a renovation? Someone lives out their beautiful work dreams, can sometimes be heard in urban society. Or an employee of the local professional fire brigade wrote down a wish list, subject: That would make us as happy as possible! In fact, it was one of the largest expert firms in the republic from the Rhine-Main area that estimated the reasonable remaining term of the house to be 2025. After that, gaming operations would no longer be justifiable.
Why is that? For example, the fact that this house was considered one of the most modern in Europe when it opened in 1905. Great, a lot of it is electric. Even better: you no longer freeze, which was still more or less common in theaters at the time. The reason for the progress were the shafts laid across the house, through which warm air could be blown. What gave the visitors a cozy feeling, but is difficult to justify today in terms of fire protection. If smoke enters somewhere, “then we don’t know where,” says Peter Gormanns, the technical director.
Gormanns, 59, has already taken part in several theater renovations. He started out as a stage technician under Claus Peymann at the Schauspielhaus Bochum, before moving to Nuremberg in 2006. They told him at the time that the theater there needed a makeover. The thing with the Klops called Opera House not really. Is Gormanns the right man now? After all, according to the plan, the renovation would not start for four years. With the return to Richard-Wagner-Platz – which was planned so far – it might then be so far in 2035, maybe later. Gormanns replies that he doesn’t plan to stop working at 65. And apparently means it seriously. That is a matter close to my heart, this project.
In many places it is not barrier-free
It’s not just about fire protection either. It is also about the question of whether the Nuremberg Opera, which is pretty much the last in its league, can get by in the long run without a clever side stage. The Supreme Audit Office complained in 2014: more games, more production, he asked the house. But at the same time warned that more space was needed to get that production done. After all, the house is not unlike a medium-sized industrial company: 650 people work at the opera, it is in operation for more than 18 hours, sometimes under unenviable conditions. There are quite a few in this supposed “temple of culture” who work in the basement, without daylight, without fresh air. The house would have required around a third more space. In many places it is not barrier-free.
The acoustics, on the other hand, are considered problematic. Ever since the National Socialists intervened in the opera room – Art Nouveau had to get out and space was needed for the “Führerloge” – the house has been feared among musicians. You don’t hear yourself playing well, you tend to get louder and louder and possibly produce porridge. So there is a lot to do in Nuremberg.
This Friday, the Opera House Commission wants to make its recommendation as to whether the opera should generally be returned to Richard-Wagner-Platz after the general renovation – which is considered likely, if only because of the synergy effects with the neighboring theater. We are also discussing where an interim could go. The favorite of the CSU and the Greens is the inner courtyard of the Nazi congress hall, which has remained torso.