Staging
Staging
Museum Roter Haubarg, Witzwort, North Frisia (DE) – 2024
The Museum Red Haubarg (Roter Haubarg) invites you on a journey through time, where the historic building itself becomes a vibrant storyteller. With interactive narratives, music, and an immersive staging, the new exhibition brings the artifacts to life, sharing their stories in an engaging and entertaining way. Visitors experience the impressive architecture and history of the Haubarg while becoming part of an immersive experience that makes the past tangible within the museum’s authentic atmosphere. The Red Haubarg connects past and present, making the region’s cultural heritage accessible to all age groups.
The Architectural Marvel of Red Haubarg
As you approach the museum, you might have meditated for a while on a seemingly endless flat landscape only structured by dykes and drainage ditches and decorated by a few grazing sheep and cows. Behind a turn, a small path leads off the main road to a secluded area where a majestic house adorned with a massive thatched roof is nestled behind a cluster of trees and surrounded by a picturesque garden.
The Haubarg building style became popular during the 17th and 18th centuries and is known for its massive wooden construction and striking pyramid-shaped roof. Some say the Haubarg is the largest farmhouse in the world. Whether true or not, it stands as an impressive example of regional architecture designed to adapt to a peculiar landscape that has been shaped by water in many different ways and reclaimed from the sea with spades.
Today, the Red Haubarg near Witzwort is one of the few houses left and a valuable contemporary witness accessible to the public. Donated to the district of North Friesland in the early 20th century, this architectural gem was converted into an agricultural museum in the 1980s and also houses a restaurant in the former living quarters.
Interestingly, its name Red Haubarg (Roter Haubarg) is rather irritating considering that there are no red elements present in the historical building. Over the centuries, locals have developed various theories to explain this discrepancy, but as of today, no strong evidence exists to support any of these claims.
Step into the 17th Century
The new exhibition provides an in-depth look into the character of the Red Haubarg, allowing the building to express itself. Visitors are greeted warmly as they enter through the East entry, where a large information panel offers insights into the experiences that lie ahead, including the exhibition spaces and the garden tour. A detailed model of the historic house provides a comprehensive overview of its wooden structure.
When you open the small door to the northern back part of the house, you will feel a refreshing rush of cool air. The exhibition spaces comprise the Loo, the area where grain was threshed, a mezzanine for storing grain, and the Vierkant, a quadrangle with sturdy timberwork and a 17-meter-high ridge. This central space used to be filled with hay and straw literally up to the roof. The atmosphere is filled with the strong scent of history, and you’ll see white-painted walls, sturdy wooden beams, and a clay floor.
Immersive Staging: The Heart of the New Exhibition
The new exhibition’s design revolves around an immersive staging featuring a site-specific object theater, a musical interlude, and solo performances by the exhibits. The house, both the backdrop and the main protagonist of the exhibition, speaks, laughs and sometimes has self-esteem issues. The Red Haubarg invites visitors on a journey through ancient times to explore the origins, heyday, and eventual decline of the Haubarg building style. Artifacts like the butter churn, hoof scraper, and flail are given voices and personalities, bringing Haubarg history to life. We used storytelling methods from theater, audio play, and gaming, drawing inspiration from the place and its inhabitants regarding content, aesthetics, and form.
Strolling the space, you can witness exhibits occasionally making remarks or clearing their throats amidst the dynamic atmosphere of creaking beams and the evolving concrete music composition emanating from the mezzanine. The choir of tools thrones at the top of the granary, breathing a sense of musicality and setting the rhythm for the course of the day. The composition is generated in real-time and provides a unique musical experience every moment. As you approach the exhibits, they suddenly start talking to you, providing invaluable and sometimes confidential insights into their historical use and significance.
During your visit, you will find yourself amidst a captivating universe as the Red Haubarg and his friends engage in a collective storytelling experience. At each full hour, you will be offered a glimpse into the lives of the people and tools who once inhabited this place through one of four different stories. These stories, or theatrical acts, range from the summoning of mythical tales to careful depictions of the everyday life on a farm over a year to anecdotal reports and whimsical incidents from the exhibits’ long career as farm tools. Plus, they have plenty of jokes to tell!
Explore the Scenic Garden: An Audio Tour with the Red Haubarg
Finally, a beautiful garden landscape invites you to linger. With headphones on and your phone’s camera scanning the QR codes on the benches, you can embark on a personal tour with the Red Haubarg. This tour offers more than just a standard audio guide – it takes you on an immersive 3D audio walk that lets you stay connected to the surrounding environment while learning about its history. The Red Haubarg shares entertaining insights about the landscape, including the unique mounds and water holes visible everywhere in the area. You’ll discover that the entire land was once underwater and was later reclaimed using spades, for example. And to keep the land dry, people developed innovative water management techniques. Engaging with the knowledgeable host will offer fresh perspectives on every corner of the garden and even those hidden behind the house, where a large manure pile once stood.
Visit the Museum Red Haubarg: A compelling destination worthy of multiple visits.
The unique exhibition at the Historic House Museum Red Haubarg beautifully connects local history with the present. You are invited to engage directly with artifacts that “speak” and share their stories through interactive storytelling and site-specific object theater. This innovative approach brings abstract themes and a static collection to life as it transforms passive observation into an active, immersive experience. Instead of merely reading or watching, you explore the history of the Haubarg through dynamic and multi-sensory real-time narratives in its authentic atmosphere, making the museum feel vivid and alive. It’s a touching experience that leads to a deeper understanding and emotional connection to the past lifestyles at a farmhouse like the Red Haubarg, as well as to the history of the architecture and its landscape. By fostering the appreciation of the local heritage from a multitude of viewpoints, its educational value makes the speaking museum a must-visit for everyone.
The museum welcomes visitors from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. every Tuesday through Sunday. Admission is free. The most up-to-date information is also available on the museum’s website at https://museum-roterhaubarg.de/
