Berliner Ensemble is auctioning off a one-night sleepover on its world-famous stage, in an attempt to cushion the blow of cultural funding cuts in the capital.

Berliner Ensemble auctions stage sleepover

Looking for your 15 minutes of fame, or maybe even a solid eight hours? World-renowned theatre Berliner Ensemble is offering the opportunity to have a sleepover on its grand stage.

Bidding started at 250 euros when the cultural institution, established in 1949 by actress Helena Weigel and her husband Bertold Brecht, listed the opportunity on ebay.

Bids quickly reached 1.400 euros and will be open until January 21, 2025. The eventual winner can invite four friends to their sleepover on January 28.

The group can enjoy the theatre’s current production of Brecht’s The Caucasian Chalk Circle that evening, will be given a comfortable bed and can have a bedtime poem read to them by an ensemble member, before the fire protection iron curtain closes at 11.30pm. Breakfast is included at 8am the following morning.

It is the first time in the theatre’s history that a private individual has been permitted to sleep on the stage. “We took the politicians’ suggestions to heart and looked for new avenues,” said Berliner Ensemble artistic director Oliver Reese.

Berlin Senate cuts culture budget by 130 million euros

After Berlin’s local government finalised budget cuts at the end of December, the city’s world-famous cultural scene will have 130 million euros of funding slashed in 2025, a 12 percent subsidy reduction on the previous budget. As a result, smaller and larger venues, including museums, galleries, theatres and nightclubs are expected to suffer financially and or face closure. 

The capital's cultural scene faces a nexus of challenges. In November, Clubcommission, an association representing the city’s nightlife establishments, warned that around half of the 250 clubs in Berlin face closure in 2025 due to unaffordable rents.

The development of the A100 motorway through Berlin’s Treptow and Friedrichshain neighbourhoods also threatens several long-running establishments, including Else, Club Ost, Renate, Fips, Oxy and ://about blank.

The Museum Sunday project, which offered free entry to 60 museums and galleries across the city on the first Sunday of every month since it launched in 2021, was one of the first cultural events affected by the recent cuts. The last Museum Sunday event ran on December 1, 2024.

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