Tempodrom

Tempodrom in Berlin is a flexible 4,200-capacity concert and events house, recognisable by its dramatic tent-like roof beside the former Anhalter Bahnhof. The permanent building opened in December 2001, yet the name began in a real circus tent two decades earlier. For gig-goers, that history means an arena-scale room with a theatrical silhouette and a setup that can shift between standing-floor and seated presentations.

A travelling tent becomes a permanent stage

On May 1, 1980, nurse Irene Moessinger used an inheritance to establish Tempodrom in a circus tent at Potsdamer Platz. Its alternative programme included rock, classical music, avant-garde theatre, circus, sport and festivals; the project moved to Tiergarten in 1984, then to Postbahnhof in 1998 as redevelopment reshaped its earlier sites.

A permanent concrete interpretation of the tent rose at the former Anhalter Bahnhof during 1999–2001 and opened with the European Film Awards in December 2001. Construction debt soon put the building’s future under pressure: the Neues Tempodrom Foundation entered insolvency in March 2004. In July 2005, insolvency administrators selected Treugast to run the event operation, keeping scheduled shows moving through the handover.

The room today

Tempodrom operates as a multi-purpose hire venue, so its bill crosses concert genres with comedy, theatre, circus, presentations and awards nights. Five areas—the main arena, small arena, foyer, forecourt and roof terrace—can run separately or together, supporting formats from 50 to 4,200 guests. A 2019 renovation raised the overall capacity to 4,200 and added padded seating in the tiered section. Expect the chosen configuration to shape the scale, sightlines and atmosphere of any particular show.