HELLERAU Festival Theatre, built in 1911 as a school of Rhythmics, today houses HELLERAU European Center for the Arts Dresden. Following an eventful history – in the 1930s it served as a military camp, later the Soviet army used it as their barracks – work began in the 1990s to bring the site back to life through art.
HELLERAU has since become one of the most important interdisciplinary centres for contemporary arts in Germany. It is home to contemporary dance, musical theatre, contemporary classical music, theatre, performance art, the visual arts and new media, as well as a place for reflection on art and culture. The internationally renowned Forsythe Company has been the company in residence here since 2005. Since April 2009 performances have again been held at the Festival Theatre all year round.
Along with its partner organisations on site, the European Center for the Arts has been working on creating an 'arts workspace' in HELLERAU. This is a place where people experiment with art, test out art, present art. In all these enterprises, contemporary dance has top priority.