Meiningen, a little town next to the Thuringian Forest, has been a stronghold of music and theatre for over 200 years. It has not only influenced German drama, but also acting and directing all over the world. Sounds pompous (that’s what I thought before going in for Meiningen’s history), but this small provincial town is a cultural hotspot indeed.

From 1680 to 1918 it was the capital of Ducal Saxony-Meiningen which was not bigger than the English County of East York is today. A territorial half-pint, but still it played a significant role in the mingle-mangle of German lordships and dominions. To a lesser extent in politics, but in the fields of economy (textile industry since the Middle Ages) and culture.

In the 18^th century the Dukes displayed great interest in the ideas of Enlightenment – so no wonder disobedient freethinkers like Jean Paul and Friedrich Schiller found refuge there. Meiningen offered them a lot: Good food and drink, such as fluffy hütes (dumplings made of potatoes usually served with red cabbage and saucy meat) and dry Saale-Unstrut wines. But above all music and theatre, in those days performed at the Riesensaal (Giant Hall) of the residential castle Elisabethenburg.

In the early 19^th century, when various German sovereigns got caught in the slings and arrows of political jumble (there were nearly thirty principalities defending their independence or trying hard to gain more power), the Dukes of Meiningen focused on expanding their cultural empire, building three theatres with a capacity that seemed much too big for a town with 6.200 inhabitants (today 21.000). The Meininger Hoftheater which opened in 1831 could accommodate nearly 800 spectators.

It was George II who positioned Meiningen as a stronghold of theater. In 1866 he did not only take over the duchy (his father had to resign because he favored the Austrians who had been defeated by Prussia in the German War), but also the management of the theatres. George was a veritable jack-of-all-trades: Stage and costume designer, prop master and director. With his wife Helene Freifrau von Heldburg (formerly known as the actress Ellen Franz) and actor-director Ludwig Chronegk he figured out a revolutionary concept of theatre which is still known as the Meininger Prinzipien. These principles paved the way for modern method acting. Who would have guessed that the ideas of a German duke ruling a tiny state influenced Konstantin Stanislawski, Elia Kazan, Lee Strasberg, Marlon Brando and Robert De Niro?

After the Meininger Hoftheater had burned down in 1908 George (meanwhile 82 years old) had it rebuilt immediately - as a homage to the first building in neo-classical style. In 1914, just a few days before the outbreak of the Great War the Theaterfürst died. A beautifully ambiguous word in German. On the one hand referring to a sovereign promoting theater, on the other hand it simply means he was an outstanding artist, a big shot of drama.

The century after George at a glance: Foundation of the University of Acting (1919), in the 1920ies center of expressionist and avant-garde theatre, in the Nazi-era and during World War II “theater business without any outstanding highlight” (Wikipedia, July 2015), in the German Democratic Republic focus on Bert Brecht. In 1989 when the communist system was overpowered by the people Meiningen (above all the theater staff) was one of the strongholds of the Demokratie Jetzt movement. Renamed in 1990, the Südthüringisches Staatstheater has proved very successful – staging concerts, drama, puppet theater, opera and musicals.

Consequently it was the latest musical production, the Rocky Horror Show, that provided the motto of the theatre’s annual summer festival – Transylvanian Nights. The shows taking place on several stages between the neo-classical buildings and Englischer Park were great – with bands from Germany and Austria: Die Kusinen, Borderline, Jana & Die Piraten and Hotel Palindrone.

The festival culminated in the appearance of the renowned German entertainer Guildo Horn. Let me quote from Wikipedia: “Born 15 February 1963 in Trier as Horst Köhler (not related to former German President Horst Köhler) is a German Schlager singer. He is mainly famous for his eccentric stage persona, which includes outrageous clothes and very extroverted antics. At the Eurovision Song Contest 1998, he was seventh with the song “Guildo hat euch lieb!(Guildo loves you).” By the way, the song contest took place in Birmingham.

But this is not the only Meiningen-connection to Britain. From 1830 to 1837 a Princess of Sachsen-Meiningen was Queen of the United Kingdom. Adelheid had married William Duke of Clarence in 1818 and he became king twenty-two years later. William IV, nicknamed Sailor Billy, is not really well-known in Germany (apart from Meiningen) or Austria, but some history books might mention him because slavery was abolished in his reign. Furthermore, the Australian city of Adelaide was named after the Saxony-Meiningen Princess.

Small, but great – Meiningen!