Royal Theater Carre

Carré is closely related to the Carré family. This family music group gave their first concerts in the late 18th century and in 1863 they came to the Netherlands for the first time. In 1866, German circus director Oscar Carré was finally allowed to build his first stone theater, replacing the Rooseboom windmill on the Onbekendegracht canal. On December 3, 1887 this building was officially opened. Originally, it was just a wooden building with a stone facade. It was immediately a huge success. At first Carré was used only during the winter, Oscar Carré's winter circus later performed but for the rest of the year the group traveled and the theater was empty. In 1893, however, the theater was hired by Dutch drama producer Frits van Haarlem for his variety shows in the summer, meaning there were performances throughout the year. The performances became very successful, thus changing the circus building into a theater for all popular forms of entertainment. Carré transformed from a circus into a theater variété.

After the death of Oscar Carré in 1911, the theater went through a rough patch. No profit was made although some directors tried new things. Max Gabriël rebuilt the theater, but this was unsuccessful and he left only a year later. Boekholt brought in a new show and new entertainment, but this didn't work either. A business that brought the circus back to entertainment has gone bankrupt. In 1920, the name of the venue was changed to Theater Carré. Finally (in 1924) two gentlemen named Benjamin and Content were able to make a profit with Carré. After Benjamin and Content, Alex Wunnink became the director. He was successful and brought many new shows, as well as huge profits. So, throughout the early 20th century, the building was mainly used for cabaret and vaudeville performances, sometimes Italian operas and operettas. Dutch stars such as Lou Bandy and Louis Davids and international celebrities such as Josephine Baker and the clown Grock have performed here.

After the death of Alex Wunnik, his son Karel Wunnik became the new director. Under Karel Wunnik, the theater was in serious trouble. In 1968, Carré was acquired with the intention of tearing it down and building a hotel on its site. After protests from the artists, the city of Amsterdam finally refused to allow demolition. In 1974, Guus Osters became the new director, but he had difficulty attracting the public. He had to take some measures and eventually a few new (and very successful) performances saved him and Carré.

In 1977, the city acquired the building. In 1987, on its 100th anniversary, the Royal Predicate was granted and renamed the Koninklijk Carré Theatre. In 2004, the theater was completely remodeled. The historic facade and interior design are retained.

Address: Amstel 115 /125, 1018 EM Amsterdam, Netherlands