From classical productions to experimental performance art, Munich’s live cultural scene is diverse. In addition to the Münchner Kammerspiele, the Residenztheater, and the Münchner Volkstheater, new formats are constantly emerging in smaller venues and at unusual locations.
The Rodeo Festival, taking place from October 9 to 17, 2026, also follows this motto. The festival brings together works from theater, dance, and performance and will be held at five venues in Munich. In this way, the city itself becomes part of the theatrical experience: venues such as PATHOS, HochX, and schwere reiter in the Kreativquartier each provide a unique setting for the performances.
Selections from the Fall Program
During the Rodeo Festival, for example, the program will commemorate life on the site before the Kreativquartier was established there in 2011. That’s because the site was once home to a now-forgotten lace and lingerie factory. Its owner, Rosa Klauber, was a Jewish entrepreneur. With “Die Fabrik der verlorenen Fäden” (The Factory of Lost Threads), the collective Traummaschine Inc. invites the audience to follow her story. The play combines theater with a sensory journey into the past and is being performed at the PATHOS Theater .
The program extends far beyond traditional stage plays. In “Symbiosis,” contemporary circus and object theater come together—in a specially constructed black tent on Frei-Otto-Straße. The performance “Giving back the Blessings” blends elements of a club night, voguing, and folklore. And in “Wood Wood Wood – Nothing’s ever good,” four performers explore the history of the Białowieża Primeval Forest on the Polish-Belarusian border.
The Rodeo Festival’s motto
The common thread here is less a single theme than the desire to break away from familiar forms and open up new perspectives. Sometimes the local past is brought to the stage; other times, movement, objects, or music tell stories of political conflicts and social issues.
The Rodeo Festival invites you to discover Munich’s independent performing arts scene at various locations—and to experience theater as a way to see the city, or even familiar sights, through a new lens. In addition to the Rodeo Festival, Ballet of Lights presents the classic fairy tale of Sleeping Beauty in a spectacular light show, combining traditional ballet with innovative technology.
Those in the mood for a spine-tingling experience can also explore the world of the Edgar Allan Poe Speakeasy —full of Gothic elegance—even after the Rodeo Festival has ended. This immersive experience combines masterful mixology with classic literature and transforms Munich’s Sudetendeutsches Haus into Poe’s dark universe. While four macabre works by the American master are brought to life in a captivating way, ingeniously crafted themed cocktails enhance the suspenseful atmosphere.
