Anniversary Stories

Where Rämistrasse meets Heimplatz today, there was still a simple inn called “Zum Pfauen” in 1837. Before long, it was joined by bowling alleys, beer gardens, and a modest hall for choral performances—places of entertainment for the growing community of Hottingen, which at the time was still an independent rural municipality just outside the gates of Zurich. Over the decades, ownership and uses changed repeatedly, until the enterprising innkeeper Heinrich Hürlimann transformed the cluster of small buildings in 1884 by establishing the “Flora-Theater,” its first permanent stage.

The decisive transformation was ultimately carried out by the architects Alfred Chiodera and Theophil Tschudy. In 1888/89, they built the “Volkstheater zum Pfauen,” an imposing historicist complex featuring a domed auditorium with seating for 800 spectators. To this day, it remains one of Zurich’s earliest largely intact examples of comprehensive site development. The first alterations to the stage and its technical equipment followed around 1900, but more ambitious projects could not initially be realised. They all failed either because of the costs involved or because there was insufficient land available behind the stage. It was only in 1923, when the Genossenschaft Pfauen, under the administrative directorship of Ferdinand Rieser, was able to acquire additional surrounding properties, that the way was finally cleared for further development.

When the lease between the Stadttheater (today’s Opera House) and the Pfauen Cooperative expired in 1926 and was not renewed, Ferdinand Rieser took over the running of the theatre himself. Rieser knew that there was one thing he lacked above all: an audience. Until then, various shortcomings of the building had deterred even enthusiastic theatregoers, so the new proprietor had the building thoroughly refurbished.

What architect Otto Pfleghard accomplished in 1925/26, however, was far more than a renovation: it marked the true birth of the Schauspielhaus as we know it today. In less than six months, from April to October 1926, the Pfauen complex underwent extensive construction work. Behind the stage, almost everything that remained from earlier periods disappeared. The stage building doubled in floor area, height, and depth; a cyclorama and a rain-effects system were added; the stage lighting could now be conveniently operated from beside the prompter’s seat; and even the orchestra pit could be enlarged by removing the first row of seats. The Pfauen was now a theatre whose technical facilities could rival those of Europe’s major stages.

In the auditorium, only the gallery balustrade was retained, stripped, however, of all decorative embellishment. Obstructive columns were removed, while the slopes of both the floor and ceiling were systematically aligned towards the stage. Covering over the former courtyard and moving the rear wall further out created additional space and, together with the installation of emergency exits, significantly improved safety.

The result was impressive. Looking back in 1932, the Schweizerische Bauzeitung wrote: “Just as the acoustics had improved, so too had the visual effect of the auditorium; the interior was composed around the time-honoured triad of red, white and a touch of gold, creating an overall impression that achieved a pleasing harmony between a sense of occasion and soothing tranquillity.”

With the 1926 conversion, Ferdinand Rieser had created a theatre that set new standards both technically and in terms of atmosphere, providing the Pfauen with a solid foundation for the decades to come. Yet the architectural history of the Pfauen complex was far from over. Before long, new demands were being placed on both the stage and the building as a whole. In the 1960s, there was even discussion of replacing it with an entirely new building. What became of those plans will be the subject of the next instalment in this series.

Anyone entering the Pfauensaal today would hardly suspect that skittles were once played here. At the turn of the century, this site was home to the ‘Volkstheater zum Pfauen’, a variety theatre with a beer garden and skittles alley – an entertainment venue that struggled with changing owners and financial difficulties before the Pfauen became a satellite stage for the Stadttheater am See, now known as the Zurich Opera House.

In 1926, the Zurich wine merchant Ferdinand Rieser took over the theatre, had the auditorium enlarged and the stage converted into a modern proscenium stage, which remains the heart of the theatre to this day. Above all, however, under Rieser’s leadership, the theatre on Heimplatz gained its artistic and financial independence. The venue transformed from a place of entertainment into the Schauspielhaus Zürich – one of the most significant stages for modern spoken theatre in the German-speaking world.

And today? The skittle alley has long been forgotten, the proscenium stage from 1926 still stands, and the Schauspielhaus has not forgotten its mission: to create a space in which drama ‘can unfold completely freely and uninhibitedly under a management that devotes its energy solely to the theatre’. This is how the board of the Zurich Theatre Association put it in September 1926 at the opening of the new season. With the 2026/27 season, we are celebrating its 100th anniversary and commemorating the eventful history of this theatre.