leaving staying at Piccolo Theater: Young theater art in Cottbus

When young voices flicker between leaving and staying

With leaving staying, the youth club of the Piccolo Theater Cottbus brings a world premiere to the stage at the Lausitz Festival that speaks from the heart of a generation. The young people share their own stories about departure, longing, origins, and looking ahead; a multi-voiced picture of the region has emerged with texts, scenes, music, and movement. The performance will take place on September 16, 2026, at 20:00 in the Piccolo Theater Cottbus and is announced for an audience aged 14 and up. ([lausitz-festival.eu](https://www.lausitz-festival.eu/media/filer_public/fd/fc/fdfc0318-1c6b-4766-b133-ac798fed403e/lausitz-festival_2026_programm.pdf?utm_source=openai))

A region as a soul stage

The piece touches a nerve that reaches far beyond Lausitz: What keeps young people in their homeland, what pulls them away, what remains when graduation is just around the corner? It is from this tension that the stage experience draws its strength. The production combines original texts with choral presence, choreographed movements, and musical moments into a theatrical evening that does not explain but makes perceivable. As a co-production of the Piccolo Theater and Lausitz Festival, the project remarkably combines youth theater, contemporary observation, and regional anchoring. ([lausitz-festival.eu](https://www.lausitz-festival.eu/media/filer_public/fd/fc/fdfc0318-1c6b-4766-b133-ac798fed403e/lausitz-festival_2026_programm.pdf?utm_source=openai))

Dramaturgy between closeness and distance

The dramaturgical idea thrives on the authenticity of the participants: Young people do not tell about others but about themselves, about expectations in their parental home, about empty city centers, train stations, big city longing, and the question of connectedness. In collaboration with Ruth-Maria Thomas, Matthias Heine, and the Lausitz Festival, a theater of immediate presence emerges that works with acting, choreography, and body work. The Piccolo Theater describes itself as a house that brings feelings, dreams, contradictions, and questions to the stage; this production builds on that. ([lausitz-festival.eu](https://www.lausitz-festival.eu/media/filer_public/fd/fc/fdfc0318-1c6b-4766-b133-ac798fed403e/lausitz-festival_2026_programm.pdf?utm_source=openai))

Venue with a clear stance

The Piccolo Theater at Erich-Kästner-Platz is a prominent site for intense, approachable performances as a children’s and youth theater. The venue offers barrier-free access to the foyer and auditoriums, an elevator, and a barrier-free sanitary facility. For visitors with wheelchairs, the theater recommends early registration during ticket reservation. The main auditorium has 141 seats; thus, a concentrated, immediate theater atmosphere is created for the theater evening. ([piccolo-cottbus.de](https://piccolo-cottbus.de/inklusion/?utm_source=openai))

Anyone who appreciates contemporary youth theater with a regional profile, emotional intensity, and precise stage presence should mark this evening in their calendar. leaving staying promises not a finished judgment but an open, intelligent, and touching theater evening that resonates long after. Experiencing it live is worthwhile. ([lausitz-festival.eu](https://www.lausitz-festival.eu/media/filer_public/fd/fc/fdfc0318-1c6b-4766-b133-ac798fed403e/lausitz-festival_2026_programm.pdf?utm_source=openai))

Official Channels of Piccolo Theater Cottbus:

• Instagram: no official profile found
• Facebook: no official profile found
• YouTube: no official profile found
• Website: https://piccolo-cottbus.de/

Sources:

• Lausitz Festival Program 2026
• Lausitz Festival Program Overview
• Lausitz Festival Venue Piccolo Theater Cottbus
• Piccolo Theater Cottbus - Inclusion and Accessibility
• Piccolo Theater Cottbus - Imprint
• Piccolo Theater Cottbus - Official Website
• radio3 - Lausitz Festival Piccolo Theater Cottbus Leaving Staying