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Teaterhuis
A boutique hotel and performance hotspot in Namibia’s largest theatre
Bet you didn’t know that the largest theatre in the country is located in Tsumeb. Strange, isn’t it? One would have thought that it would be Windhoek’s National Theatre of Namibia (NTN), but it’s not. With 535 striking scarlet seats inside a massive auditorium, the Van Riebeeck Theatre, now known as Teaterhuis (“theatre house” in Afrikaans) dwarfs the NTN.
The theatre was built in the middle of the previous century in the familiar modern aesthetic most buildings of the era are known for. Recently though, the floating concrete canopy above the entrance was closed up and became part of the owners’ four bedroom penthouse, with the harmonious addition of columns in the more classical style providing support from below.
It stands as a monument to the mining heyday that catapulted Tsumeb to the size it is today. The theatre and the gymnasium across the street were owned by the mines, but the theatre is now privately owned.
Teaterhuis currently serves as a coffee shop, venue and boutique hotel. The latter has ten wellappointed rooms, of which two are luxury rooms with views over the adjacent park grounds.
Some of the rooms started out as massive storage rooms on a mysterious mezzanine floor with no stairs leading to them. Some could only be reached by nimbly walking across the ceiling, high above the theatre floor, from the projector room to the stage.
As a venue, the theatre has hosted South African artists like Joe Black. According to the owners, their dream would be to show movies at the theatre, but purchasing movie rights is currently much too expensive.
Check them out on Facebook for more info or to stay updated on future events.
Nina van Zyl
