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The city of Darmstadt honors the theater association with a Silver Medal of Merit
Nearly 100 members and guests of the Hessian Theater Association 1925 Darmstadt e.V., in a festive mood, gathered on September 30th for a celebratory banquet at the Comedy Hall to mark the association's 100th anniversary. The champagne reception and a lavish buffet, the "first course," were a feast in themselves!
The red curtain gave the invited guests a view of the stage at the start of the program, revealing a "Traase" garden restaurant atmosphere with a blue illuminated sky, apple wine and illustrious guests of the theater group, as is well known from the "Datterich".
Kikeriki impresario and host Roland Hotz welcomed those present and invited Mayor Hanno Benz to the stage, who had a very special honor in store: the Silver Medal of Merit, the highest award the City of Darmstadt bestows upon the Hessian Theatre Association! "The Hessian Theatre Association distinguishes itself through its preservation of the local dialect, its close collaboration with the State Theatre, and the enthusiasm of its actors. It is an integral part of the local
theatre tradition and contributes to Darmstadt's identity with its performances," said Mayor and Head of Cultural Affairs Hanno Benz. The mayor was met with heartfelt thanks from the two chairmen, Rafael Reißer and Ralf Hellriegel, as well as a long and appreciative round of applause from the audience. The two also took the opportunity to express their sincere gratitude to the numerous sponsors for their generous contributions on the occasion of the anniversary.
None other than Dr. Peter Engels, the city archivist in "active retirement," then delivered a successful keynote address on the "reasons for the founding" of the Hessian Theatre Association, which was established in the autumn of 1925 by Ernst Legal, the director of the then State Theatre. This served the sole purpose of authentically staging Niebergall's "Datterich" as part of the city's social life. This objective remains unchanged to this day. At the same time, over the years the amateur theatre group's repertoire has expanded to include plays such as "The Glass Cabinet," "He Wants to Have Some Fun," "The Merry Vineyard," "Katharina Knie," "Nothing Will Come of the Boy," "The Inn in the Spessart," "Pension Schöller," "Arsenic and Old Lace," "A Midsummer Night's Dream," and "Volpone.".
The HSG currently has 93 members, about half of whom belong to the permanent ensemble. The theater group is also a multi-generational project. The oldest member, Fredi Seip, is 93 years old and has been a member since 1948. The youngest member is 22.
After the entertaining and amusing "reading" by long-time HSG members Marga Hargefeld, Jana Gies, and Gösta Gantner, the current Datterich actor, Hans-Joachim Heist, stepped into the spotlight in a period Biedermeier costume. With relaxed, humorous, and witty statements and quotations, the actor provided excellent lighthearted entertainment in the hall.
Karsten Wiegand, director of the Darmstadt State Theatre, also took the opportunity to offer ample praise and thanks to the HSG for decades of excellent collaboration. His birthday present to the HSG is still in the works: a booklet entitled "Will Happiness Find Me?" containing interesting verses for all 93 members of the association! The HSG had already produced and presented each member with a very valuable commemorative medal made of fine silver as a gift to mark the anniversary year. A commemorative publication is in preparation but will not be released until next year, as it will document all the anniversary activities in 2025.
To conclude the successful evening, the Kikeriki Theater launched a special assault on the audience's funny bones with excerpts from their puppet show "Attention Grandma." It wasn't until well after midnight that the lights were turned off in the Comedy Hall, and a group of revelers in high spirits headed home after a wonderful evening.
By Ralf Hellriegel
