Start of construction of the DNT in Weimar delayed: New award procedure necessary!

Start of construction of the DNT in Weimar delayed: New award procedure necessary!

in Weimar, where the historic German National Theater (DNT) is located, there are delays in the planned general renovation. The construction started for 2027, but the city decided to rewrite the allocation of planning services. The background of this decision is a decision by the Thuringia award chamber of June 20, 2025, which found that the rights of a competition participant were violated. In particular, it dealt with the liability of individual requirements of the award, which the city administration does not share in all points, but nevertheless waived a complaint with the Higher Regional Court in Jena in order to avoid a legal dispute, such as MDR reports.

The city of Weimar faces the challenge of initiating a new award procedure and plans to implement this as soon as possible. A temporal framework for the publication of this tender is to take place in the current calendar year, which means that both the scheduling and the construction start can be adjusted accordingly. The aim of the new advertisement is to create clear and stable framework conditions for the monument -friendly renovation of the DNT, which has been the most famous theater stage since its opening in 1908. A comprehensive renovation and a moderate expansion between 2027 and 2032 are planned for which the federal government and the state of Thuringia provide a total of 167 million euros.

background of the delay

In the last procurement phase, which took place in 2024, a total of twelve offices had taken part in the international planning competition. The jury awarded three designs to third place, but no winner was chosen. This resulted in two offices that had not been taken into account at the award chamber, which prompted the city to temporarily suspend the contract. The award chamber was forced to extend the decision -making periods repeatedly by the large number of pending procedures, and so many questions remained unanswered until a clear legal assessment was found. This development has significantly influenced the entire schedule, such as Weimar.

With the new advertisement, the city administration would like to ensure that the DNT - which is known not only for its artistic importance, but also for historically significant events such as the constituent meeting of the German National Assembly in 1919 - is restored in a sustainable framework. At the same time, the expectation that the theater can continue to be perceived as building culture in an exemplary and economically viable manner remains in the focus of the planning.

For everyone who is interested in future developments around DNT, the concrete details on the general renovation and all planned measures can be found on Kulturimmobilie.de. The entire planning is called here, which should set the course for the future of the theater landscape in Weimar.