The "Institut für Theaterwissenschaft" (ITW) was founded in 1992 by Prof. Dr. Andreas Kotte as the first department for theatre science in Switzerland. The course is based on the study of the four scientific subjects of the History of Theatre, the Theory of Theatre, Dramaturgy and Analysis of Performance.

Teaching and research aim at the establishment of a qualified and differentiated public discourse about theatre and theatricality. The main focus of the Department of the Arts Faculty is on past and present European Theatre History and Swiss theatre.

For graduates, theatre science is not a training towards a specific profession. However, it can lead to careers in the operational field of the general cultural domains of journalism, audio-visual media, cultural management etc.

In 2005, the ITW has published the first comprehensive encyclopaedia about Swiss theatre, containing over 3600 articles in the four main languages (German, French, Italian and Romansh).

Other results of our research are being published in two book series: Theatrum Helveticum and Materialien des ITW Bern.