The piece – “Frankfurt trade fair history – an entertaining look back over 800 years” – was written by Thorsten Morawietz, head of “Dramatische Bühne”, for the ensemble to perform in the “Römer” town hall as part of the festival on the last weekend in September. In a pleasantly anecdotal style, the play traces Messe Frankfurt’s story from a trade fair centre with imperial privileges to its current status as a leading international trade fair group.
“With this play, Messe Frankfurt is not only making a contribution to the Altstadt celebrations, but is also doing its bit for culture in Frankfurt and the region as a whole”, said Wolfgang Martin, President and Chief Executive Officer of Messe Frankfurt. The play lasts 30 minutes and admission to the eleven performances will be free of charge. Access to the town hall basement will be via the side entrance of the Schwanenhalle (Paulsplatz 3).
Every year, events at Messe Frankfurt create some 33,360 jobs in Germany
This basement – and other locations in the vicinity of the town hall – was where the first trade fairs in Frankfurt were held. Since as far back as the Middle Ages, merchants and businesspeople from many different countries would come together twice a year at the town hall and in the surrounding streets. At the beginning of the 17th century, up to a quarter of these came from outside Germany. Today, three quarters of exhibitors and around half of visitors come from abroad. This generates valuable business for a wide variety of industry sectors such as hotels, restaurants and other services – both in the region and throughout the rest of Germany. Every year, events at Messe Frankfurt create some 33,360 jobs in Germany and generate immense purchasing power of €3.6 billion, around half of which can be attributed to Frankfurt.
