Every year, a jury of critics independently selects 10 remarkable productions from up to 600 productions from the German-language region to be presented in Berlin in May. The festival programme features discussions on aesthetic, social and culture-political issues with and in front of the audience.

The scholarship programme of the International Forum gathers artists from theatre-related disciplines and all continents to think together about theatre and make connections. The festival is critically accompanied and reflected by the aspiring arts journalists of the Theatertreffen-Blog. Open Campus turns Theatertreffen into a place of networking and encounters for Berlin school and international university students. Additionally, since 2021 the Forum Ökologische Nachhaltigkeit im Theater (Forum Ecological Sustainability in the Theatre) brings representatives of the invited theatres together for an exchange of ideas on sustainable culture production.