The quintet from the Rhine-Main area musically transports the audience back to the 1980s, when Marillion established itself as one of the most influential formations of neo-progressive rock. The success of the early years is closely linked to the charismatic frontman Derek William Dick, better known as "Fish." During this time, four albums were created, the songs of which are no longer featured in the program of today's Marillion lineup. Nevertheless, there are still many die-hard fans who fondly remember the era with Fish.

This target audience is exactly what the Hessian formation has in mind, which has now secured a firm place in the local tribute scene. "A better Marillion cover band is hardly imaginable," wrote the Bergsträßer Anzeiger following their debut performance at the established music theater Rex.

In addition to the "Misplaced Childhood" album, which is at the center of the concerts and presented in full length, the setlist also includes the classics from the other albums that are no longer found in today's performances by the originals. "Thus, the evening becomes a pleasant recollection of earlier Marillion concerts, an evening that somehow also feels like a musical theater performance. For it all sounds like Marillion, like a recording of a previously unknown live album." (Rheinische Post, April 4, 2017).

Through their authentic presentation of the Fish era, the band has gained an excellent reputation among Marillion fans in recent years, which has already taken the quintet to neighboring countries.

Doors open: 7:00 PM

Playing, laughing, being loud, romping, doing nothing – and that in an exhibition house! From September 4, 2024, BAUBAU invites exactly that. In the play space for children designed by artist Kerstin Brätsch, more is allowed than forbidden. Colorful wallpapers, structures, objects, and a range of “Loose Parts” form spaces on the ground floor of the Gropius Bau that do not impose fixed guidelines but are determined by the activities of the children. They dictate the direction and form of what happens here. Thus, this place becomes a space of possibilities that can change day by day.

BAUBAU will launch in September 2024 in a prototype version and will continue to develop and grow over the coming years both inside and outside the Gropius Bau – in close exchange with the children and their wishes, as this is their place.

The Play
All children have the urge to play. This is how they learn to understand themselves and the world. Especially open, self-determined play is of great significance for emotional and social development. The educational concept for BAUBAU is therefore based on the principles of free play: Here, there is time, space, and permission for children to follow their own needs and interests. They are accompanied by playworkers – trained staff who create a safe and supportive environment where children can play freely.

 
The Art
BAUBAU playfully questions what a museum or an art institution should be. The comprehensive spatial design developed by Kerstin Brätsch is full of references and inspirations: elements from her previous works, such as marbling, paintings, or stucco marble work, reappear here in altered forms and materialities. The wallpapers, curtains, fabrics, seating furniture, and climbing structures are inhabited by dinosaurs, fantastical beings, termite mounds, and abstract elements. With their strange, funny, and perhaps a bit eerie shapes, they create an open framework for free play.

Kerstin Brätsch's practice is designed to allow and incorporate influences from outside. While she has previously collaborated with artists or artisans, she now does so in a completely different way with children: She invites the children to reshape and further develop the space according to their own ideas and visions, without the influence of the artist in unpredictable ways.

Mon, Wed, Thu, Fri 12:00–18:00
Sat, Sun 11:00–18:00
Tue closed

Welcome to the world of musicals!
Enjoy the highlights from Dance of the Vampires, Cats, or The Phantom of the Opera, and many other musicals!

At the Musical Dinner, you will be served the absolute highlights of the most popular musicals alongside an exquisite multi-course menu.

While you enjoy this musical dinner, the musical stars will provide that special touch in authentic costumes.

Musical has never been so close!

Doors open at 6:30 PM

FLEETWOOD MAC
„The Incredible Story”
performed by The Cosmic Carnival

Fleetwood Mac has written music history as a band and is mentioned in the same breath as the Beatles, Rolling Stones, or Queen. Fleetwood Mac was founded in 1967 by guitarist Peter Green and drummer Mick Fleetwood, who also provided the band's name, as a British blues rock band. The classic lineup of Mick Fleetwood, Peter Green, Jeremy Spencer, and John McVie sold more records in 1969 than the Beatles or the Rolling Stones. Blues-oriented rock songs like "Black Magic Woman" and "Oh Well" became worldwide hits.

In 1970, Fleetwood Mac hit a crisis. Lead guitarist Peter Green had significant problems coping with the pressure of the band's success and fell increasingly into drug addiction - he left the band unexpectedly. The second guitarist Jeremy Spencer also struggled with similar issues and left the band during an ongoing U.S. tour.

Due to these massive musical setbacks, Fleetwood Mac underwent a stylistic and musical transformation in the early 1970s by adding two new band members: Christine McVie on keyboards and Bob Welch as the new lead guitarist. The era of Fleetwood Mac as a pop-rock band had begun. Hardly any other band has ever undergone such a radical musical style change without losing popularity. An absolute novelty in music history.

In 1974, Bob Welch left the band, and Mick Fleetwood managed to find two new band members whom he met by chance in the same recording studio. Lindsey Buckingham joined the band as the new guitarist and singer, and Stevie Nicks also joined as another singer, making another pair in the band - alongside Christine and John McVie - and a musical stroke of luck.

In 1975, the first album of this Fleetwood Mac formation was released with the simple title "Fleetwood Mac." This album contained several hit singles like "Rhiannon," "Over My Head," and "World Turning." Rarely has there been such a musical symbiosis among individual band members in music history.

The follow-up album "Rumours" (1977) is now regarded as the best-selling album in rock-pop history and is considered one of the best pop albums in the world - in the USA alone, it sold over 19 million copies, and the total sales of the album are estimated to exceed 80 million. An album that essentially consists only of hit singles - it is referred to as the "Crisis Album" of the band, as it marked the break between John McVie and his wife Christine during the recording sessions, and singer Stevie Nicks also separated from her partner guitarist Lindsey Buckingham. The lyrics and music of the album are an expression of this inner turmoil within the band, which openly expressed its conflicts and hostilities. Despite the tensions, further albums followed, such as "Tusk" (1979), which was less commercially successful but is regarded as one of Fleetwood Mac's best albums among critics, as well as "Mirage" (1982) and "Tango in the Night" (1987), both albums that unconditionally tied in with the worldwide success of "Rumours."

The secret of the band lay in the three creative songwriters Christine McVie, Stevie Nicks, and Lindsey Buckingham - who fueled each other through the critical private conflict field within the band. The growing relationship crises were consistently reflected in the energetic album productions. Additionally, Fleetwood Mac was regarded as one of the best live bands worldwide. The songs were not simply performed live as they were recorded, but were continually varied, with the charismatic presence of the individual band members playing a decisive role on stage. Pop songs defined by exceptional drummer Mick Fleetwood, groundbreaking guitarist Lindsey Buckingham, and the extraordinary voices of Stevie Nicks and Christine McVie.

The Dutch band THE COSMIC CARNIVAL takes the audience on a journey through the universe of this legendary band Fleetwood Mac. From the late 60s, influenced by guitarist Peter Green with his fantastic blues style, to the pop-rock legend Fleetwood Mac with the influence of Lindsey Buckingham, Stevie Nicks, and Christine McVie as one of the most successful bands in the history of rock-pop music.

All the great hits, such as "Don't Stop," "Big Love," "Dreams," "Go Your Own Way," and "Little Lies," can be experienced up close during this impressive show. With great passion and strong empathy, performed by one of the best live acts in the Netherlands. THE COSMIC CARNIVAL succeeds in capturing and delivering this tension-filled and energetic live performance of Fleetwood Mac that characterized Fleetwood Mac's live concerts.

After numerous sold-out concerts in the Netherlands, this impressive Fleetwood Mac production is now coming to Germany for the first time.

Doors open at 7:00 PM

"The Rock Christmas Dinnershow" unites, for just a few selected event days, the legendary Christmas songs into a composition of intoxicating auditory delight and culinary pleasure that you should not miss.

Hear and experience a show program with absolute classics such as "Last Christmas," "Feliz Navidad," "White Christmas," "Rudolph, The Red-Nosed Reindeer," "Frosty The Snowman," and so on ...

Experience musical delicacies and a wonderful menu or buffet that leaves nothing to be desired.

With "The Rock Christmas Dinnershow," this extraordinary event becomes a feast for all the senses. Let yourself be pampered by a fantastic live program and travel with Bing Crosby and Doris Day into a beautiful Christmas season!

Feliz Navidad!

Entry: 5:30 PM

Playing, laughing, being loud, romping, doing nothing – and that in an exhibition house! From September 4, 2024, BAUBAU invites exactly that. In the play space for children designed by artist Kerstin Brätsch, more is allowed than forbidden. Colorful wallpapers, structures, objects, and a range of “Loose Parts” form spaces on the ground floor of the Gropius Bau that do not impose fixed guidelines but are determined by the activities of the children. They dictate the direction and form of what happens here. Thus, this place becomes a space of possibilities that can change day by day.

BAUBAU will launch in September 2024 in a prototype version and will continue to develop and grow over the coming years both inside and outside the Gropius Bau – in close exchange with the children and their wishes, as this is their place.

The Play
All children have the urge to play. This is how they learn to understand themselves and the world. Especially open, self-determined play is of great significance for emotional and social development. The educational concept for BAUBAU is therefore based on the principles of free play: Here, there is time, space, and permission for children to follow their own needs and interests. They are accompanied by playworkers – trained staff who create a safe and supportive environment where children can play freely.

 
The Art
BAUBAU playfully questions what a museum or an art institution should be. The comprehensive spatial design developed by Kerstin Brätsch is full of references and inspirations: elements from her previous works, such as marbling, paintings, or stucco marble work, reappear here in altered forms and materialities. The wallpapers, curtains, fabrics, seating furniture, and climbing structures are inhabited by dinosaurs, fantastical beings, termite mounds, and abstract elements. With their strange, funny, and perhaps a bit eerie shapes, they create an open framework for free play.

Kerstin Brätsch's practice is designed to allow and incorporate influences from outside. While she has previously collaborated with artists or artisans, she now does so in a completely different way with children: She invites the children to reshape and further develop the space according to their own ideas and visions, without the influence of the artist in unpredictable ways.

Mon, Wed, Thu, Fri 12:00–18:00
Sat, Sun 11:00–18:00
Tue closed

Christoph Sonntag is known in "The Länd" like a "Bunt Dog": In ARD as

a supporter for the good cause on "Masters of Everyday Life," as a performer on "Do You Understand Fun?", where he cleverly plays tricks on his fellow humans time and again. And of course, also as "Brother Christophorus" in his cult show "The Latest Rumor," where he tears apart the politicians present with a sermon on fasting.

But his core competence is the live show; there he flourishes to incredible greatness, when he speaks with the audience and when he performs his wild, technically elaborate cabaret show.

“AZ-NZ, Old Times, New Times” was the name of Christoph Sonntag's successful cult comedy on SWR3 and broke all records! On the radio, it delighted millions, and the TV recording from the Porsche Arena has already been broadcast over two dozen times on ARD.

Now "The King of Swabian Cabaret" (SWR) returns with exactly this cult; after all, the "New Times" from back then are today's new old times! And today is already yesterday tomorrow!

Christoph Sonntag with the new program "AZNZ 2.0", current and spectacular, in elaborate staging and with a guaranteed tear-inducing laugh!

A fantastic stage design that is second to none

Funky musical interludes,

Sharp-tongued word acrobatics

And time and again mother wit along with mischief up his sleeve

impressively demonstrate that SWR was and is right when they call Christoph Sonntag the "King of Swabian Cabarets"

Copyright: Christoph Sonntag

Doors open: 19:15 Uhr

Four Imaginary Boys - Germany's most sought-after and Europe's most booked The Cure Tribute Band - consists of four dedicated musicians who have been passionately devoted to the complete works of The Cure since 2006, honoring the spirit of the legendary Wave gods.

When one thinks of The Cure, the unmistakable and incomparable voice of Robert Smith comes to mind. Imitation or even parody are out of the question, but luckily, the frontman of Four Imaginary Boys seems to be a vocal kindred spirit. The Four Imaginary Boys are not aiming to be mere clones of their heroes. What is more important to them is to create the unique atmosphere of The Cure songs with their atmospheric sounds and soundscapes and to transmit it to the audience.

Therefore, the real stars of the evening are the timeless songs of The Cure that have influenced generations of Gothic/Alternative/Pop bands to this day.

The Four Imaginary Boys are:
Martin Strasser (Vocals, Guitar)
Fred Jacobsson (Bass, Vocals)
Roberto Broch (Guitar)
Florian Prantl (Drums)

Admission from 7:00 pm

"What's the bullshit?!" – this question is one that everyone has probably asked themselves at least once. Hendrik Brehmer asks himself this regularly. Life is complicated, and while many try to manage somehow or just accept things, he does the exact opposite: he accepts nothing simply. But he also changes nothing. Instead, he gets a little worked up. In his first solo program "bisschen reingesteigert," Hendrik takes the audience into his very personal overwhelm: a 30-year-old man, somewhere between fatherhood, relationships, and everything else – and the pressing question: "Where is my Lego Technic anyway?"
He actually wanted to understand the universe as a physicist. Today he is a comedian – and doesn't even understand his own feelings or why there are so many different noodle issues. On stage, he stands as a young adult who is overwhelmed with his fears – and afraid of becoming even more overwhelmed.

Hendrik Brehmer doesn't want to explain the world – he can't even do that. But he shows how absurd the attempt to cope with it is. With dry humor, honest stories, and a sense for the absurd, he talks about his grandma's views, his father's missing leg, or what it's like to start a family in the capital as a small-town kid from East Germany. Hendrik shows that the truth doesn't always have to be comfortable to be funny. Real templates. No Disney.

In the end, Hendrik just tries to find a bit of serenity in the chaos with creativity and empathy. Will he succeed? Find out – LIVE on stage.

Doors open at 8:00 PM

Fans of Pasquale Aleardi already know that he is not only an internationally successful actor but also an excellent singer and entertainer.
The Swiss with Italian-Greek roots has demonstrated his versatility in over 80 TV and film productions such as "Resident Evil," "Keinohrhasen," "Gotthard," or for ARD in his own crime series, the adaptation of the bestseller novels as "Kommissar Dupin."

Since his engagement on Broadway in New York in the musical "Chicago," he has been successfully showcasing his passion for music.
With his band "Pasquale Aleardi & Die Phonauten," he celebrates "antidepressant music," an exhilarating mix of soul, pop, and funk.

The German-texted original compositions reveal charming double meanings: a cheerful wink elevates the profound perspective on interpersonal relationships.
But because Aleardi and the Phonauten, Jörg "Spike" Hamers and Marc "Mary" Leymann, are not only excellent musicians but also great entertainers, an evening with this trio has an undeniable drawback:
It is always over too quickly...

Entrance: 7 PM

Playing, laughing, being loud, romping, doing nothing – and that in an exhibition house! From September 4, 2024, BAUBAU invites exactly that. In the play space for children designed by artist Kerstin Brätsch, more is allowed than forbidden. Colorful wallpapers, structures, objects, and a range of “Loose Parts” form spaces on the ground floor of the Gropius Bau that do not impose fixed guidelines but are determined by the activities of the children. They dictate the direction and form of what happens here. Thus, this place becomes a space of possibilities that can change day by day.

BAUBAU will launch in September 2024 in a prototype version and will continue to develop and grow over the coming years both inside and outside the Gropius Bau – in close exchange with the children and their wishes, as this is their place.

The Play
All children have the urge to play. This is how they learn to understand themselves and the world. Especially open, self-determined play is of great significance for emotional and social development. The educational concept for BAUBAU is therefore based on the principles of free play: Here, there is time, space, and permission for children to follow their own needs and interests. They are accompanied by playworkers – trained staff who create a safe and supportive environment where children can play freely.

 
The Art
BAUBAU playfully questions what a museum or an art institution should be. The comprehensive spatial design developed by Kerstin Brätsch is full of references and inspirations: elements from her previous works, such as marbling, paintings, or stucco marble work, reappear here in altered forms and materialities. The wallpapers, curtains, fabrics, seating furniture, and climbing structures are inhabited by dinosaurs, fantastical beings, termite mounds, and abstract elements. With their strange, funny, and perhaps a bit eerie shapes, they create an open framework for free play.

Kerstin Brätsch's practice is designed to allow and incorporate influences from outside. While she has previously collaborated with artists or artisans, she now does so in a completely different way with children: She invites the children to reshape and further develop the space according to their own ideas and visions, without the influence of the artist in unpredictable ways.

Mon, Wed, Thu, Fri 12:00–18:00
Sat, Sun 11:00–18:00
Tue closed

For Hillu's Herzdropfa, the simple formula by Thaddäus Troll applies:
“Swabian is who speaks Swabian”
Our Swabian homeland is not one of the federal states defined by politicians,
but rather a "cultural area," a region where people share a common culture.
This includes the Swabian frugality:
*“Rub the salt off the pretzel so that the guest doesn't get thirsty!”
And of course Spätzle:
“Cheese Spätzle, cabbage Spätzle, liver with Spätzle, potato Spätzle, Spätzle with sauce…..
Maultaschen are a must on every Swabian menu:
Maultaschen melted, Maultaschen in broth, Maultaschen with eggs…………Maultaschen VEGAN
(no one fears anything)
Wash it down with a glass of cider:
A good cider cures every pain,
it is the Swabian's pearl.
Wine delights the heart of man,
the cider makes the whole man! (source unknown)

What else belongs to a true Swabian, you will learn in this program!
Hillu's Herzdropfa (truly a genuine Swabian) knows everything about these Highlanders and what else is happening on the Alb!
Speaking dialect is a matter of honor at Hillu's Herzdropfa!
A small excerpt from their Alb-Swabian dialect:
Zirengga?
Schdriggjäggle?
Aurawai?
Soidawieschd?

Admission: 19:00 Uhr

The 17th program of the “Erstes Allgemeines Babenhäuser Pfarrer(!)-Kabarett”.

Egon Krenz fared under Erich Honecker much like Prince Charles under Queen Elizabeth II.: He spent most of his life lying in wait. Friedrich Merz also had to wait a whole Angela Merkel – which felt like an eternity! – for the chancellorship candidacy. Succession must be regulated! Catholics, for example, believe that their priest receives his job qualification, the ordination, directly from the Apostle Peter through a chain of blessings that has not been interrupted for about 1,992 years. This sounds crazy, of course, and is therefore described by the term "apostolic succession," because: Latin used to be about as superduper as the word "algorithm" is today, something mysterious that one does not really understand and of which everyone believes it is most likely incredibly important. Papal elections are a good example of this. Old men are locked in a really beautifully painted chapel and are only let out when a chamberlain in a funny cheesecake uniform burns the ballots together with potassium chlorate to create “fumus albus,” that is, white smoke. And anyone who is now smirking arrogantly is greatly mistaken. Being old-fashioned is an underestimated weapon! It could be the meteorite on which Elon Musk's Mars rockets crash. Who will succeed Donald Trump? Goofy? Or maybe a real person again for a change? The world doesn’t always have to get crazier just because it keeps spinning!

In its 17th program, the “Erstes Allgemeines Babenhäuser Pfarrer(!)-Kabarett” addresses the question of how much power lies in the resistance of the unmodern. If you think about your grandma’s ecological balance or the circumstances

Entrance: 7:00 PM

Experience the oldest private brewery in Southern Hesse and also one of the most innovative breweries in Germany. During the brewery tour, you will learn everything about our history and our unique brewing and raw material philosophy. You will experience firsthand how our beers are brewed in a natural, gentle, and water-saving way, and get to know the special taste of our characterful beers.

Content: 1.5 hours guided tour through the family exhibition and the new brewery, a beer glass as a collectible gift, sampling, short beer tasting at the brewery

Important information about the tour:
• Tours take place only with a minimum of 10 participants - In case of cancellation by the organizer, rebooking is possible or a refund is guaranteed
• The tour is not suitable for wheelchair users or strollers due to a steep staircase.
• No pets allowed.
• The meeting point is in the Glaabsbräu courtyard (Frankfurter Str.)

Experience the oldest private brewery in Southern Hesse and also one of the most innovative breweries in Germany. During the brewery tour, you will learn everything about our history and our unique brewing and raw material philosophy. You will experience firsthand how our beers are brewed in a natural, gentle, and water-saving way, and get to know the special taste of our characterful beers.

Content: 1.5 hours guided tour through the family exhibition and the new brewery, a beer glass as a collectible gift, sampling, short beer tasting at the brewery

Important information about the tour:
• Tours take place only with a minimum of 10 participants - In case of cancellation by the organizer, rebooking is possible or a refund is guaranteed
• The tour is not suitable for wheelchair users or strollers due to a steep staircase.
• No pets allowed.
• The meeting point is in the Glaabsbräu courtyard (Frankfurter Str.)

Meta Hüper
„When Night Falls …“
Chansons

Date: Saturday, 5.12.26
Start: 8 PM
Admission: 30.70 € Pre-sale (including fees)
32.00 € Box office

When Meta steps onto the stage in tails, suspenders, and a hat, it feels as if time has been turned back by 100 years. The Berlin singer is a musical jack-of-all-trades. In her program “When Night Falls,” the chansonnière par Excellence combines her classical roots with a love for the music of the 1920s and French chanson. The passionate musician impresses not only with her singing but also stages the pieces by using violin, melodica, singing saw, and other instruments, creating a unique musical Gesamtkunstwerk. As a singer, violinist, and bandleader, she has been performing for years on international stages with stars like Till Brönner, Max Raabe, and Salut Salon.

Copyright: Kleinkunstbühne Thing

Doors open: 7:00 PM

The event has been rescheduled from March 26, 2026, to December 5, 2026, due to the artist's schedule. Already purchased tickets remain valid!

REIS AGAINST THE SPÜLMACHINE is a music-comedy duo from Buxtehude and Oldenburg, consisting of Hanke Blendermann (* 1987), stage name "Onkel Hanke", and Philipp Kasburg (* 1981), stage name "Don Filippo". They describe their style as "music-comedy," also referred to as "music-cabaret," derived from the words "cover" and "music-cabaret."

The new tour starting in autumn 2025

"Off to the TOURLAUB!" is the motto of REIS AGAINST THE SPÜLMACHINE's new stage show. In the duo's fourth concert program, everything revolves around the theme of vacation. "We have a vacation playlist with us, which we want to use to invite our audience to a two-hour short holiday," explains Hanke Blendermann the concept.

The duo has been well-known throughout Germany for many years for their captivating stage show and their worldwide hits with humor - brilliant and funny song parodies guaranteed to be catchy. Whether AC/DC or Blümchen, whether ballad or rock song - Philipp Kasburg and Hanke Blendermann demonstrate musical versatility and confidently move through all genres with two-part arrangements and interactive entertainment. They present unexpectedly funny lyrics: The Beach Boys go "Drinking by a Lake" and Westernhagen lives "Without Villas" on the street. TOURLAUB offers plenty of new material, but also popular evergreens like the million-click hit "Have You Tried Drinking?" will not be missing on this journey. Philipp Kasburg promises: "We offer 5-star entertainment - all-inclusive. TOURLAUB is the ideal feel-good place for everyone who just wants to celebrate and laugh freely, carefree, and in community again." Blendermann recommends: "Take a dip in the crowd, lay the towel on the lounge chair, and book tickets today for unforgettable TOURLAUB moments!"

REIS AGAINST THE SPÜLMACHINE simply belongs on stage. Because a concert by the two is considered an unforgettable happening, leaving the audience happy and wishing for a repeat by the end of the evening. Why? Because they connect people through music and humor, not taking themselves and their audience too seriously, yet never being unfair.

Doors open: 7 PM

underhouse guest at Frankfurter Hof

Springmaus, Germany's most well-known improvisational theater, has been touring with various live programs throughout Germany since 1983 – sometimes with multiple ensembles at the same time. The inventor of Springmaus is the actor Bill Mockridge, known by many as "Erich Schiller" from the series "Lindenstraße" (and by younger audiences as the father of Luke Mockridge). Successful comedians and cabaret artists like Dirk Bach, Bernhard Hoëcker, Tetje Mierendorf, and Ralf Schmitz began their careers as ensemble members of Springmaus.

Merry Christmaus
The Christmas classic of Springmaus is the perfect introduction to the festive days. In their unique way, the actors of Germany's most well-known improvisational theater turn the Christmas events upside down. Here, the tree is decorated, the goose is plucked, and the wine is made to glow, bringing true joy. “Merry Christmaus” – that’s two hours of escape from shopping stress filled with creative chaos and heartwarming laughter. The gifts: fun and improvisation until Santa Claus’s ears are flapping, served on the holy boards that mean the world. Surely, the Christkind will stop by as well.

Image: ©Stefan Mager

Doors open: 7:00 PM