Kroll Opera House - 1895-1931: State Opera

1895-1931: State Opera

Shortly afterwards the building was acquired by the Prussian Königliche Schauspiele royal theatre company and Kroll's establishment was rebuilt as the Neues Königliches Operntheater, a second theatre beside the Staatsoper Unter den Linden. Works by young composers like Igor Stravinsky and Gustav Mahler were performed here, but also popular concerts given by Enrico Caruso and operettas like Die Fledermaus. As the decent opera house Unter den Linden did not match with Emperor Wilhelm's attitudes, plans for a new luxuriant opera hall at the site of the Krolloper were developed and demolition had already started in 1914, when the outbreak of World War I halted the construction works.

After the war the authorities of the Free State of Prussia were unable to finance the reconstruction, which was finally carried out by the Volksbühne theatre company according to the plans of a Volksoper ("People's Opera") designed by Oskar Kaufmann. Nevertheless it appeared that the Volksbühne company also had overextended itself and the completion of the refurbishment had to be secured by public funds. On 1 January 1924 the building was re-opened again as the Oper am Königsplatz, the second home of the Berlin State Opera, with Erich Kleiber conducting Wagner's Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg. With the square, the house was renamed Staatsoper am Platz der Republik in 1926. To Berliners it remained known as the Krolloper.

In 1927 the Kroll Opera was again detached from the Staatsoper Unter den Linder as a separate opera company with Otto Klemperer as its resident conductor, re-opened on 19 November with Beethoven's Fidelio. During Klemperer's term the house saw world premières as Paul Hindemith's Neues vom Tage in 1929 and Arnold Schönberg's Begleitmusik zu einer Lichtspielszene in 1930. He worked with renowned conductors like Alexander von Zemlinsky and directors like Gustaf Gründgens, as well as Caspar Neher, Laszlo Moholy-Nagy, Teo Otto, Oskar Schlemmer und Giorgio de Chirico as stage designers. The entire singing cast was placed in the hands of the singing pedagogue, Professor Frederick Husler. In an interview on German radio Husler talks about the special atmosphere which existed at the opera house during this period. He mentions some of the singers who were engaged at the time: "Jarmilla Novotna, who later went to New York to the Metropolitan Opera. Or Kaethe Haidersbach. She became very famous as Evchen in “Meistersinger” in Bayreuth. Or Maria Schult-Stormburg and Moie Vorbach, two very distinct personalities. They went to the other house Unter den Linden later. And a very impressive personality: Iso Golland, the Russian. He returned to Russia and has become a highly respected pedagogue." He describes the generosity which existed among the singers: "Their comradeship was extraordinary. No intrigues would arise. I remember that before rehearsals for a performance of “Die Verkaufte Braut” three “Brides” were sitting in my room. Novotna, Haidersbach and Zaezilie Reich. I remember them discussing, absolutely unselfishly, who of them should sing. Haidersbach said Novotna was the original Czech. Novotna said that Haidersbach had the more suitable lyric voice, whereas she herself was a coloratura soprano. And Reich then put forward an argument (and against herself) the benefit of the whole group. Where could you find such a thing?"

Klemperer's performances and their modern mise-en-scène were ahead of their time and raised the opposition by conservative circles. In the highly charged political atmosphere during the late days of the Weimar Republic, public pressure made the general administrator of the Prussian state theatres Heinz Tietjen realize, that the administration could not afford the funding of three opera houses in Berlin. Despite Klemperer's protests, the Krolloper was finally closed on 3 July 1931 with the last performance of Mozart's The Marriage of Figaro.