# Störtebeker Festival

The Störtebeker Festival (German: Störtebeker-Festspiele) is an yearly open-air theatre festival in Germany. It is based on stories around the medieval German privateer Klaus Störtebeker and his Victual Brothers, who later turned to pirates.
Founded in 1959, as part of an East German cultural initiative, the festival has become Germany's most successful open-air theatre event, and is broadcast by public television network NDR. It is held in the small town of Ralswiek on the isle of Rügen.

## Background

In 1959, the "Rügenfestspiele" were founded in Ralswiek as part of a cultural commission of the GDR and the Ralswiek natural stage was created. The place for the then Rügen Festival was found in the spring of 1959 between Ralswiek Castle and the Boddenufer, and the natural stage was then built in five months of construction and the village was converted into a festival venue.
From 1959 to 1961 and 1980 to 1981 the Dramatic Ballad "Klaus Störtebeker" by Kurt Barthel was performed under the direction of Hanns Anselm Perten and the choral direction of Günther Wolf with about 1,000 participants. A total of 670,000 visitors were counted during these five summers.

## Production since 1993
### Content

In contrast to the piece of the time, the legend of the pirate Klaus Störtebeker, who sailed the Baltic Sea with his Vitalien brothers at the end of the 14th century, is told at the Störtebeker Festival since 1993, each spread over a period of four to six years. In 2006 the production was called In Henker's Hand, in which Klaus Störtebeker was beheaded. The fourth cycle is planned for the period 2007-2012; the first episode in the summer of 2007 was titled Betrayed and Sold. In 2009, a trilogy began about the treasure of Störtebeker. The cycle was completed by the piece Störtebeker's Death. In 2013 we started from scratch with the beginning of a legend. Sascha Gluth, who took over the role of Klaus Störtebeker from 2002 to 2012, was replaced by Bastian Semm. The role of Goedeke Michels was taken over by Andreas Euler. Both played their leading roles for a cycle long (2013-2017).

### Number of Visitors

On August 17, 2007, the 912th performance since 1993 counted the four millionth visitor.
On September 1, 2008, the 2005 season record was broken. On this day, the 367,000th visitor was counted, six performances before the end of the season. However, this record was broken again in 2009, with a total of 394,766 spectators attending the most successful open-air theatre in Germany this year.
On July 19, 2010, the 1091st performance since 1993 counted the five millionth visitor to Ralswiek. This results in an average of 4600 visitors per performance with a capacity of 8802 seats.
With the end of the 2016 season, the festival will attract more than 7.3 million visitors in 24 years and more than 1500 performances.

## Contributors

The Störtebeker Festival employs more than 140 extras, 20 actors, 30 horses, four ships with skippers, and other behind-the-scenes staff. The casting of the extras takes place at the beginning of March of the respective year.

### Actors with the Most Contributions

Störtebeker actors :
| Actor | Ideas | Period |
| Norbert Braun | 540 bets | 1993 to 2001 |
| Sascha Gluth | 719 | 2002–2012 |
| Bastian Semm | 335 | 2013–2017 |
Performers who were most frequently on stage :
| Actor | Ideas | Period |
| Norbert Braun | 1391 | 1993-2001, since 2007 |
| Dietmar Lahaine | 1332 | 1993–2018 |
| Hans-Jörg Fichtner | 1259 | 1993–2012 |
| Wolfgang Lippert | 1249 | 2000-2001, since 2003 |
| Mike Hermann Rader | 1127 | since 2003 |
| Burhard Kurth | 991 | 1993–2008 |
| Mircea Crișan | 796 | 1993–2006 |
| Fred Braeutigam | 790 | 1993–2005 |
| Charles Lemming | 737 | 2005–2019 |
| Thomas Linke | 737 | 2009–2019 |

### Overview of performers

| Starring | Role | In the years |
| Norbert Braun | Klaus Störtebeker, various | 1993-2001, since 2007 |
| Sascha Gluth | Klaus Störtebeker | 2002–2012 |
| Bastian Semm | Klaus Störtebeker | 2013–2017 |
| Alexander Koll | Klaus Störtebeker | 2018–2019 |
| Moritz Stephan | Klaus Störtebeker | from 2021 |
| Dietmar Lahaine | Goedeke Michels, merchant Langendoorp | 1993–2001, 2003–2013, 2018 |
| Andreas Euler | Goedeke Michels | 2013–2017 |
| Alexander Hanfland | Goedeke Michels | from 2018 |
| Wolfgang Lippert | Abellin, the ballad singer, various | 2000-2001, since 2003 |
| Mike Hermann Rader | Various | since 2003 |
| Thomas Linke | Various | seit 2009 |
| Charles Lemming | Wigbold, various | 2005, 2006, 2008, 2011, since 2013 |
| Karin Hartmann | Queen Margaret, Fronica, various | 1993, since 2013 |
| Hans-Jörg Fichtner | Various | 1993–2012 |
| Burkhard Kurth | Various | 1993–2008 |
| Fred Braeutigam | various, now working behind the stage | 1993–2005 |
| Mircea Krishan | Various | 1993–1997, 1999–2006 |
| Roland Seidler | Various | 1993–2003 |
| Ben Hecker | Various | 2003–2013 |
| Sabine Kotzur | Various | 1993–2001 |
| Mario Ramos | Various | 2009–2015 |
| Nils Düwell | Various | 1998–2004 |
| Manfred Reddemann | Various | 1995–1996, 2005–2006, 2010 |
| Klaus-Peter Thiele | Various | 1998–2001, 2003 |
| Wolfgang Dehler | Various | 1996–1997, 1999–2001 |
| Sibylle Pape | Various | 1997, 2003–2007, 2010 |
| Robert Röske | Various | 1994, 1996–1997, 1999–2000 |
| Renate Blume | Various | 1999–2002 |
| Peter Theiss | Boatman | 2002–2005 |
| Julia Horvath | Orka tom Broke, Maraike | 2004–2006, 2012 |
| Ingrid van Bergen | Various | 2005–2008, 2010 |
| Robert Glatzeder | Brother Thomasius | 2007–2010 |
| Martina Guse | Various | 2004, 2008, 2010–2011 |
| Frank Rebel | Various | 2004–2005, 2007 |
| Jürgen Haase | Various | 2008–2009, 2011 |
| Claudia Gaebel | Mary, Elizabeth | 2010–2011, 2013 |
| Ronnie Paul | Schlunz | 1993–1995 |
| Patricia Schäfer | Ingeborg of Mecklenburg, Sophia of Pomerania-Wolgast | 2008, 2014, 2016 |
| Neithard Riedel | Various | 2012–2014 |
| Ben Bremer | Various | 2007, 2015, 2016 |
| Maria-Anne Müller | Various | 1997, 2000 |
| Heidemarie Wenzel | Various | 1999–2000 |
| Jörg Bundschuh | Various | 2001, 2006 |
| Roland "Rollo" Maier | Ballad singers | 2003–2004 |
| Heike Schober | Maraike | 1993–1994 |
| Peter Cwielag | Schlunz | 1996–1997 |
| Joachim Kretzer | Guy de Rigault | 2009–2010 |
| Daniela Kiefer | Valentina Visconti & Queen Margaret | 2009, 2014 |
| Susanne Szell | Tine, Sophia by Pomerania Wolgast | 2012, 2015 |
| Thomas Kornack | Short | 2013–2014 |
| Bianca Warnek | Baroness Ewa, Tetta tom Brok | 2016, 2017 |
| Carin Abicht | Various | 1993 |
| Cersten Jacob | Nightwatchman Wehmeier | 1994 |
| Grit Stephan | Orka tom Broke | 1995 |
| Ivette Richter | Frauke tom Broke | 1996 |
| Hans Hartz | Ballad singers | 2002 |
| Jenny Jürgens | Lady Ann | 2005 |
| Gerit Kling | Countess van Dooren | 2006 |
| Vanida Karun | Miranda | 2006 |
| Jan Baake | Hisko von Emden, water carrier, lead-wolter | 2006 |
| Christina Kraft | Agnes | 2007 |
| Nadja Kruse | Katarina | 2008 |
| Heiko Schendel | Councillor & City Guard | 2012 |
| Hans Hohlbein | Müller | 2012 |
| Sarah Hannemann | Ann-Marie | 2013 |
| Anna Lena Class | Elisabeth | 2014 |
| Marco Matthes | Edwin Westhoff | 2014 |
| Hans H. Steinberg | Hinrik Westhoff | 2014 |
| Anika Lehmann | Nadeshda | 2015 |
| Marco Bahr | Konrad von Jungingen | 2016 |
| Nicolas König | Simon von Ütrecht | 2017 |
| Philipp Richter | The Kleene | 2017 |
| Heinrich Rolfing | Henry van Ostergard | 2017 |
| Volker Zack | The Kleene | since 2018 |
| Sina-Valeska Jung | Selma, Queen Margaret | 2018 |
| Thomas Ziesch | Various | since 2018 |
| Nicola Ruf | Dorothea von Achenbach | 2018 |
| Frank Richartz | Aydan | 2018 |
| Greta Galisch de Palma | Smilla | 2019 |
| Krista Birkner | Queen of Denmark | 2019 |

## Performances since 1993

| Playtime | Cycle | Duration | Title | Director | Ideas | Visitors |
| 1. | I. | 3 July - 29 August 1993 | "How to become a pirate" | Roland Oehme | 58 | 78,060 |
| 2. | I. | 2 July - 28 August 1994 | "Fight for Stockholm" | Roland Oehme | 58 | 136.985 |
| 3. | I. | 1 July - 26 August 1995 | "Storm on Gotland" | Roland Oehme | 57 | 183.429 |
| 4. | I. | 22 June - 31 August 1996 | "Pirates of the West Sea" | Roland Oehme | 61 | 210.590 |
| 5. | I. | 21 June - 30 August 1997 | "The Sword of the Executioner" | Roland Oehme | 62 | 266.099 |
| 6. | II. | 20 June - 29 August 1998 | "Broken Chains" | Roland Oehme | 61 | 244.754 |
| 7. | II. | 26 June - 4 September 1999 | "The Vitaly Brothers" | Roland Oehme | 61 | 292.413 |
| 8. | II. | 24 June - 2 September 2000 | "The Crusaders" | Roland Oehme | 61 | 296.974 |
| 9. | II. | 23 June - 1 September 2001 | "Hamburg-Hanse-Henker" | Roland Oehme | 61 | 320.007 |
| 10. | Iii. | 22 June – 31 August 2002 | "The Beach Robbers" | Roland Oehme | 61 | 281.644 |
| 11. | Iii. | 28 June – 6 September 2003 | "The Wolf of the Seas" | Holger Mahlich | 61 | 335.208 |
| 12. | Iii. | 26 June – 4 September 2004 | "In the Sign of the Cross" | Holger Mahlich | 61 | 340.423 |
| 13. | Iii. | 25 June - 10 September 2005 | "Pirates before Britain" | Holger Mahlich | 67 | 366 200 |
| 14. | Iii. | 24 June – 9 September 2006 | "In Executioner's Hand" | Holger Mahlich | 67 | 360.366 |
| 15. | Iv. | 23 June – 8 September 2007 | "Betrayed and sold" | Holger Mahlich | 67 | 335.319 |
| 16. | Iv. | 21 June – 6 September 2008 | "The Sea Wolf" | Holger Mahlich | 67 | 377.916 |
| 17. | Iv. | 20 June – 5 September 2009 | Störtebekers Gold Part 1 "The Legacy" | Holger Mahlich | 67 | 394.766 |
| 18. | Iv. | 19 June – 4 September 2010 | Störtebekers Gold Part 2 "The Curse of the Moor" | Holger Mahlich | 67 | 381.858 |
| 19. | Iv. | 18 June – 3 September 2011 | Störtebekers Gold Part 3 "The Treasure of the Templars" | Holger Mahlich | 67 | 360.097 |
| 20. | Iv. | 23 June – 8 September 2012 | "Störtebeker's Death" | Holger Mahlich | 67 | 362.963 |
| 21. | V. | 22 June – 7 September 2013 | "Beginning of a Legend" | Kai Maertens | 67 | 343.190 |
| 22. | V. | 21 June – 6 September 2014 | "God's Friend" | Peter Dehler | 67 | 355.125 |
| 23. | V. | 20 June – 5 September 2015 | "Enemy of the World" | Thomas Schendel | 67 | 357,187 |
| 24. | V. | 18 June – 3 September 2016 | "On Life and Death" | Thomas Schendel | 67 | 350,836 |
| 25. | V. | 24 June – 9 September 2017 | "In the Shadow of Death" | Marco Bahr | 67 | 338.305 |
| 26. | Vi. | 23 June – 8 September 2018 | "Call of Freedom" | Marco Bahr | 67 | 310.405 |
| 27. | Vi. | 22 June – 7 September 2019 | "Oath of the Righteous" | Marco Bahr | 67 | 333.289 |
| 28. | Vi. | 19 June – 11 September 2021 | "In the Face of the Wolf" | Marco Bahr | 73 | ? |

## Economic Situation

The number of visitors to the spectacle has increased significantly since 1993. In 2006, there was a small decrease in the number of visitors, which was also in line with the general trend in tourism figures on the island of Rügen and was due to the bad weather and the economic situation in Germany. In 2007, however, there was another increase and the 2008 season began with a significant increase in viewers.
Störtebeker Festspiele GmbH & Co. KG is a private family business that does not receive government subsidies and is co-financed by sponsors. The new media partner has been the NDR's.
Peter Hick has been theatre director of the Störtebeker Festspiele since 1993. His wife Ruth Hick and daughter Anna-Theresa Hick are managing directors of the company.