Theater under the microscope: New works and explosive topics in Vienna!

Theater under the microscope: New works and explosive topics in Vienna!

Vienna is as culturally lively as ever. The 2025 theater season already has a lot to offer, with fresh productions and remarkable pieces. Today it's all about the balance between success and failure on the city's stages. In recent months we have been able to enjoy new works by authors such as Turrini, Mitterer and Kehlmann, who have captivated audiences with their creative approaches.

The announcement by Nikolaus Habjan, who is bringing the grotesque comedy “Schicklgruber” from Berlin to Vienna, is particularly exciting. Andrea Breth, known for her impressive productions at renowned stages, also dedicates herself to the play “A German Life” by Christopher Hampton. This piece is based on the moving notes of Brunhilde Pomsel, Joseph Goebbels' personal secretary. Lore Stefanek initiated this collaboration with Breth, and Föttinger describes the first construction test as an exciting event, the result of which promises a multi-voiced production.

A moving picture of life

Brunhilde Pomsel, born on January 11, 1911, was not only a central figure in Goebbels' office, but also a woman with a complex history. In 2014, at the ripe old age of 103, she shared her memories in the documentary “A German Life,” based on a 30-hour interview. Her life began in the Jewish milieu of Berlin, she joined the NSDAP in 1933 and was transferred to the Reich Ministry for Public Enlightenment and Propaganda in 1942 on the recommendation of a Nazi friend. There she worked as a stenographer until the end of the war, dealing with the manipulation of statistics and the dissemination of propaganda.

After the war, Pomsel experienced a dramatic turnaround - she was imprisoned in three concentration camps before escaping to West Germany, where she worked as a secretary until her retirement. Her time in the Nazi regime left a clear mark on her life, although she insisted until her death that she had known nothing about the “Final Solution”.

Theater in the shadow of ideology

The confrontation with the dark chapters of history does not go without an echo in the theater. In Nazi Germany, those in power tried to use the theater for their own purposes and maintained strict influence over playwrights and theater makers. Artists had to either adapt, retreat or emigrate, with many brilliant minds leaving the country. The ideals of the Weimar Republic, such as intellectual freedom and the desire to experiment, were replaced by dullness and chauvinism.

The aim was to create a national consciousness and to awaken “heroic hearts”, especially among young people. But the reality was often marked by censorship and a decline in creativity - many important works were lost in book burning. Control over the theater was in the hands of the “Reichstheaterkammer”, which had to approve crucial decisions in order to build a nationalist intellectual structure.

But despite this history, the power of theater remains unbroken. Matthias Hartmann, the former director of the Burgtheater, is currently directing Bernhard's “Theatermacher” and reflects on stereotypes such as racism and age discrimination. Föttinger also takes on the title role of the stage despot and illuminates the interactions between art and society.

It looks like Vienna is about to embark on a theater season that not only aims to entertain, but also to make you think. In this colorful mix of history and present, it will be exciting to see what stories our city's stages will tell in the coming months.

For more information about the current theater season in Vienna, you can find the full details in the reports from news.at, Wikipedia and theater-info.de read up.