Theatergesellschaft Fröhlichkeit 1902 Eschweiler-Bergrath e.V.
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The Theatergesellschaft „Fröhlichkeit 1902“ Eschweiler-Bergrath e. V. is an amateur theatre society in Bergrath, a district of Eschweiler near Aachen in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Founded in 1902, it is, according to its own chronicle, the only one of the many theatre societies active in Eschweiler around 1900 to have survived. Since the 1990s it has been known for comedies in the local Ripuarian dialect (Eischwiele Platt) written by one of its members.[1]
| Founded | 1902 |
|---|---|
| Members | 107 (as of May 2025) |
| Legal form | Registered association (eingetragener Verein) |
| Member of | Amateurtheaterverband Nordrhein-Westfalen |
| Location | |
| Headquarters | Eschweiler |
| Country | Germany |
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| Links | |
| Website | froehlichkeit1902.de |
History
1902 to 1945
Around 1900 numerous amateur theatre societies were formed in Eschweiler, mostly from Christian youth and journeymen's associations, marksmen's brotherhoods and church choirs. In Bergrath, members of the young men's association and the church choir had been staging literary and musical performances since about 1900. In 1902 they gave the group its own name, Theatergesellschaft „Fröhlichkeit“. The society had its own band, the Burenkapelle.[1]
The period up to 1914 is described as the society's heyday, with dances with dramatic interludes every six to eight weeks, large theatre evenings, parades and theatre contests with other Eschweiler societies. The repertoire included chivalric plays, religious and historical dramas, patriotic pieces, burlesques and classics such as Schiller's Kabale und Liebe. In the 1920s, with the rise of the cinema and the gramophone, the number of performances fell, and most other Eschweiler theatre societies disappeared. After 1933 the society lacked young players, and at the end of 1939, after the outbreak of the Second World War, it ceased its activities.[1]
Revival after 1950
At the end of 1950 the founding member Heinrich Krüttgen and three others revived the society, and its players were back on stage in October 1951, at first in the halls Friebe and Esser. The post-war repertoire consisted of dramas, folk plays such as Der Schinderhannes, and above all comedies and farces, alongside variety evenings and carnival sessions. The 60th anniversary in 1962 opened with Der Etappenhase; after the Friebe hall was demolished, the society moved to the hall of the Burghof. At this time it was the only amateur theatre group still existing in Eschweiler. By its 70th anniversary it had found a new home in the Bergrath parish hall.[1]
For the 75th anniversary in October 1977 a representative of the Bund Deutscher Amateurtheater (BDAT) honoured several members, and the society staged August Hinrichs's comedy Siebzehn und zwei. In the early 1980s the number of active players fell to six, and repeated appeals for new members in the press had little response. For the 80th anniversary in 1982 the society performed Ephraim Kishon's Der Trauschein.[1]
Since 1990
Jakob Brüsseler, chairman from 1987, recruited six new members, and in October 1990 the society gave its first variety evening in years. In 1991 ten school leavers of the Eschweiler Waldschule joined together with their teachers Cornelia Emmerling and Stefan Eschbach, which the chronicle describes as having secured the society's future.[1]
For the 90th anniversary in 1992 Stefan Eschbach wrote Die Festrede, a satire on the anniversary itself. He then wrote a series of dialect comedies set in Eschweiler's history: De Berschmann (premiered 29 October 1993), Die Schmuggler (1996, set in 1946), Et Franzusejold (1999, set in 1918) and De Ananasplantaasch van Sansibar (2000, set in 1898). These were performed both in the Bergrath parish hall and at the Frankental cultural centre in Stolberg. In 1994 and 1995 the society also staged cabaret evenings written by its members. When Brüsseler stepped down as chairman in 2001 and was made honorary chairman, Eschbach wrote Köbes us de Flasch (2001) as a farewell piece for him.[1][2]
In April 2023 the members elected an entirely new board after the previous board under chairwoman Petra Grün stood down.[3] At the general meeting in May 2025 the society reported strong growth, especially among young people, with 107 members, 17 of them active players.[4]
Repertoire
Since 2010 the society has mainly performed German-language comedies in the Bergrath parish hall.[2]
| Year | Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1993 | De Berschmann | Dialect comedy by Stefan Eschbach |
| 1996 | Die Schmuggler | Dialect comedy by Stefan Eschbach |
| 1999 | Et Franzusejold | Dialect comedy by Stefan Eschbach |
| 2000 | De Ananasplantaasch van Sansibar | Dialect comedy by Stefan Eschbach |
| 2001 | Köbes us de Flasch | Dialect comedy by Stefan Eschbach |
| 2012 | Wir kommen alle in den Himmel | |
| 2013 | Rommé zu Dritt | |
| 2014 | Tante Klare O´Hara | |
| 2017 | Resturlaub im Ladyhort | |
| 2018 | Goldrausch am Knickertsberg | |
| 2022 | Kreuzfahrt im Schweinestall | [5] |
| 2025 | Hühnerhof und heiße Quellen | Premiere 24 October 2025[4] |
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 Aus unserer Vereinschronik…, Theatergesellschaft Fröhlichkeit 1902 e.V., retrieved 14 October 2026. Archived on 13 June 2026.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Unsere Aufführungen, Theatergesellschaft Fröhlichkeit 1902 e.V., retrieved 14 October 2026. Archived on 15 October 2026.
- ↑ Theatergesellschaft Fröhlichkeit stellt sich neu auf, Theatergesellschaft Fröhlichkeit 1902 e.V., 3 August 2023, retrieved 14 October 2026. Archived on 10 July 2026.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Mitgliederversammlung und Kartenvorverkauf der Theatergesellschaft „Fröhlichkeit 1902“ Eschweiler-Bergrath e. V., Theatergesellschaft Fröhlichkeit 1902 e.V., 16 June 2025, retrieved 14 October 2026. Archived on 15 October 2026.
- ↑ „Kreuzfahrt im Schweinestall“ Aufführungen, Theatergesellschaft Fröhlichkeit 1902 e.V., 18 September 2022, retrieved 14 October 2026. Archived on 13 June 2026.