The history of the theatre in Cologne, Germany, has its roots in the Middle Ages. Although there are references to the existence of a Late antiquity Cologne theatre in the Roman Colonia Claudia Ara Agrippinensium, as has also been proven for other Roman cities (e.g. Mainz, Trier or Xanten). Despite this culture of theatrical play cultivated in the Roman past, a direct link to this time and form does not take place until centuries later. Although Cologne was one of the most important cities in Europe in the Middle Ages, the city had no significance in the theatre sector. The indecisiveness of the mayors over the centuries marked Cologne as an exception among major German cities in the field of theatre. After the revival of this art, theatre in Cologne also underwent a change to modern history.
Forerunner of the Cologne Theatre
While in the Middle Ages "drama" was primarily an ecclesiastical affair (mystery and passion plays), in that the faithful were usually offered staged performances of the saints' stories were offered to the faithful mostly on feast days, so the citizens of Cologne experienced, in addition to improvised burlesques and emerging carnival plays, the performance of a plays as a performance of a bourgeois ensemble for the first time in 1539.
The play Homolus oder der Sünden loin ist der Toid by the printer Jaspar von Gennep (c. 1500–1564) was shown. Its stage success showed the progressive secularisation of thought, in which the bourgeoisie also gradually took this culture into its own hands. Since the ecclesiastical plays of the Middle Ages did not focus on the performers' own pleasure in artistic activity, nor did they have the incentive of a [fees, they were emotion-less cults or rituals procedures. Thus the Homulus actors were all laymen from Cologne's bourgeoisie, who followed an artfully designed plots with zeal and talent.
As Hermann von Weinsberg reports, the dramas performed by enjoyed great popularity. For example, the tragedy of Saint Lawrence was first performed in 1581 by the scholars of the and repeated for years on St. Laurence's Day (10 August) in front of numerous spectators.
The first printed document that has come down to us from "Bertram von Hilden" from the year 1620 is a leaflet of a student performance at the Montaner Gymnasium, in which a programme of the drama about the king Assuerus Xerxes was described.
It was not until the 17th century that amateur actors became professional actors, following the example of English pickelherings, which travelled the country with Wanderbühnen. In this way, they combined the pleasant with the useful and earned their living with acting talent. The performances usually took place in the afternoons and initially in the open air. Later, a podium made of planks was erected especially for the performances at the edge of busy alleys or in squares, such as the . Cologne's first theatre buildings were not princely buildings, but private theatres or municipal properties. Among the latter was the "Ballhaus auf der Apostelstraße", a hall of the Bruloff House on the (opposite the ) - very often used for theatre performances - with a capacity for 800 people. This house belonged to the family (previously Hartmann dem Wisen) in the early 14th century, to the Hardevust von Vaitalmershoven family until 1417, and passed to the city in 1561. It began as a "Katzbahn" in 1595 and is attested as a ballroom from 1648; its tenant was Niclas Kisselstein. It was demolished in 1827 due to dilapidation. The "Gebuirhaus" of the parish of St. Brigiden at the also functioned as a theatre. At that time, all performances were subject to the supervision of the Cologne Council. In addition, since the 17th century, there have been performances at irregular intervals in several .