Archive and museum on the history of cabaret and satire in Mainz's Proviantmagazin, with a cabaret bar, stage and the Walk of Fame outside.
June 8, 2025 – December 13, 2026
Around 67 sheet-music title pages from the Golden Twenties show the close connection between music and graphic design across jazz, the avant-garde and Art Deco, and portray composers, lyricists and graphic artists.
The foundation was laid by the graphic artist Reinhard Hippen from Leer, who as a teenager already collected every piece of satirical material that came his way. In 1961 he founded the German Cabaret Archive in Mainz – reportedly also out of admiration for Hanns Dieter Hüsch, who lived there. Hippen expanded the collection until 1989. After his death the city of Mainz took over the holdings, and the lawyer Jürgen Kessler developed the archive into a cultural foundation, which is now funded by the state and federal governments.
Its home is the ground floor of the historic Proviantmagazin in Mainz's old town. Beneath flat-arched and barrel-vaulted ceilings are stored photos, posters, directors' scripts, sound recordings, sheet music, caricatures, manuscripts and the papers of well-known cabaret artists, both pre-bequests and estates. Part of it is accessible as a museum and is complemented by changing exhibitions. A red bar and a semicircular stage also make the building an events venue.
In front of the building, the Cabaret Walk of Fame, with bronze plaques known as the "Stars of Satire", has commemorated influential artists since 2004; new stars have been awarded again since 2023. A second location in Bernburg an der Saale is devoted to GDR cabaret.
| Adults | €4 |
|---|---|
| Reduced | €2 |
| Children & teens | –School pupils free |
| Students & apprentices | freeStudents free |
| Archive tour during opening hours (from 10 people) | €10Per person, approx. 60 minutes, including admission and a glass of Secco |
| Archive tour outside opening hours (from 15 people) | €18Per person, approx. 60 minutes, including admission and a glass of Secco |
| Tour of the exhibition with the curator (from 10 people) | €12Per person including admission and a glass of Secco; outside opening hours from 15 people €18 |
| Open Sunday | €4Twice a month on Sundays 11 am–5 pm |
School pupils and students have free admission; students and upper-school pupils can attend evening events free of charge if they are not sold out.
The rooms are step-free. The lift is on the long side of the Proviantmagazin at Neue Universitätsstraße 2 (ring the bell at the Kabarettarchiv there); anyone needing assistance should preferably get in touch beforehand.
The museum hasn’t published any information on this.
Schillerplatz · 4-min walk · 100 m
Bus and tram to the Schillerplatz stop, then on foot across Romano-Guardini-Platz
Parking available
Schillerplatz car park/underground car park directly in front of the Forum Theater unterhaus (open around the clock), access via Schillerstraße/Neue Universitätsstraße or Kleine Langgasse/Neue Universitätsstraße.
The archive is in the red brick Proviantmagazin building, which also houses the Fastnachtsmuseum (Carnival Museum).
Get directionsRed cabaret bar with coffee, tea, wine and sparkling wine; snacks at evening events, cocktails at the Apéro.
| Guided tours | yes · approx. 60 min |
|---|---|
| Good to know | Guided tours from 10 people by registration, outside opening hours from 15 people. In good weather the meeting point is the Große Stern on Romano-Guardini-Platz; groups of more than 25 people should be split up. For 50 people or more, a stage talk or cabaret programme is possible instead of a tour. |
