He is considered the founder of German acting and a monument has been erected in his honor in Schwerin: Conrad Ekhof. At the Ekhof Square between the Mecklenburg State Theatre and the State Museum stands the bust of the actor, playwright, and founder of the first German acting school in Schwerin. The entire square space, surrounded by trees, constitutes a single monument. Hans Kies created the bust in 1961.

The actor Conrad Ekhof was born in Hamburg in 1720. He grew up with his family in the courtyard of the first public opera house in Germany, where he had his first contact with the world of theater. Ekhof initially worked as a clerk for a lawyer in Schwerin - a stroke of luck, as the artistically inclined young man had access to his library. His desire to become an actor began to take shape. Later, he became a member of a traveling theater group. During a guest performance in Schwerin, the ruler Christian Ludwig II was extremely fascinated. Conrad Ekhof subsequently worked permanently in Schwerin, honing his skills as a playwright and thereby achieving new qualities for the art of acting in general. On April 28, 1753, he founded the first German acting academy with members of the Schönemann group.
After 17 years, he left the group and once again traveled as a nomadic actor. In Hamburg, he opened the first German national theater in 1767. The dramaturge was none other than Gotthold Ephraim Lessing. For Ekhof, this marked the heyday of his work. Duchess Anna Amalia later brought the great actor to Weimar.

When Conrad Ekhof died on June 16, 1778, in Gotha, he was considered the most significant actor in Germany. The Society of Friends of the Mecklenburg State Theatre Schwerin e.V. supports young artists at the end of each season with the award of the Conrad Ekhof Prize.