For damages

Vienna Burgtheater sues Teichtmeister

Teichtmeister was convicted of possessing and producing paedophile content last September.(Bild: Reinhard Holl)

Former TV star Florian Teichtmeister's first appearance after his criminal conviction on September 5, 2023. The former Burgtheater actor took his seat in the Labor and Social Court on Monday at 9 a.m. Dressed in a black suit and represented by lawyer Manfred Arbacher-Stöger, this time he is facing a lawsuit from the Burgtheater. His former employer is now suing the actor for almost 100,000 euros.

"Why didn't you do anything? Suspended him or prepared an understudy? Why were you so blinkered?" Arbacher-Stöger asks why the Haus am Ring did not react after the allegations became known. "Perhaps he was naive. He told us that he would sue his partner at the time," argues Robert Beutler, commercial director of the Burgtheater.

"Hoped for a diversion"
The former actor is slimmer than at his court hearing in Landl. He appears clear and focused. At the beginning, he says he is currently looking for work. "I was hoping for a diversion," says Teichtmeister when asked why he hadn't come clean much earlier in a conversation with his former employer.

Why didn't you do anything? Suspended him or prepared an understudy? Why were you so blinkered?

Anwalt Manfred Arbacher-Stöger vor Gericht

"I explained that three of the four accusations were false. There were also appointments. With regard to the fourth accusation (note: child pornography files), I didn't know the true extent at the time." He had said that he was cooperating with the police in this regard.

"I sought a conversation with director Martin Kušej at the Christmas party in 2022," says Teichtmeister. At that time, he learned that diversion was not possible. "He said he wouldn't have time until after the holidays."

Teichtmeister was convicted of possessing and producing paedophile content last September.(Bild: Reinhard Holl)

Role in "Nebenan" canceled without replacement
Teichtmeister most recently took on the role in the play "Nebenan". This was canceled without replacement after the actor was charged. "Would it have been possible to recast the play in five days?" asks Arbacher-Stöger. "Yes, that is possible. There are technical aids," Teichtmeister is convinced.

Canceled performances and legal fees
The claimed damages amount to 94,493 euros due to canceled performances, reprinted program booklets and legal fees.

Lawyer Manfred Arbacher-Stöger is representing Teichtmeister in the proceedings at the Labor and Social Court.(Bild: Zwefo)

Depictions of abuse of minors
In January 2023, the bombshell burst and Teichtmeister was charged. It was only at this point that the castle released the 44-year-old. Numerous depictions of abuse of minors, some accompanied by gruesomely sadistic texts, were confiscated from Teichtmeister during a house search in August 2021. Last September, he was then sentenced to two years' conditional imprisonment for pornographic depictions of minors.

Strict conditions
When he was sentenced, Teichtmeister was given strict conditions for his conditional prison sentence. These included forensic psychotherapy, psychological treatment, probation assistance and confirmation of abstinence from alcohol and drugs.