Comic Opera Theater

(Komische Oper), an opera theater in Berlin, one of the leading musical theaters in the German Democratic Republic (GDR).

The Comic Opera Theater was opened in 1947. Its founder, artistic director, and producer is W. Felsenstein. The theater’s repertoire includes the world’s most artistically valuable classical and contemporary works. The best productions, embodying the realistic striving and creative principles of the Comic Opera Theater, have included Bizet’s Carmen (1949), Weber’s Der Freischütz (1951), Mozart’s The Magic Flute (1954), Janáček’s The Cunning Little Vixen (1956), Verdi’s Otello (1959), and Smetana’s The Bartered Bride (1960); the last five were awarded the National Prize of the GDR. Also noteworthy were the stagings of Matthus’ The Last Shot (1967), Prokofiev’s The Love for Three Oranges (1968), and Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess (1970). In 1966 a ballet troupe was established at the Comic Opera Theater. The principal balletmaster is T. Schilling. The opera company has toured in many countries throughout the world, including the Soviet Union (1959 and 1965). In 1970 the ballet troupe performed in the USSR.