For an ice cream with

“Lake Traunsee is cold, but you get used to it”

Karin Bergmann was the first woman to head the Burgtheater, making Viennese theater history.

(Bild: Liz Blur)

Karin Bergmann, former head of the Burgtheater, spends her summers in Gmunden in the Salzkammergut. Is she the envy of Vienna? She laughs with a wink. In the "Krone" talk, she openly explains why Gmunden helps her in a difficult phase of her life. She has two contrasting ice cream flavors in her cone.

For the past three years, Karin Bergmann has been encouraging young directors to stage contemporary productions at the Stadttheater Gmunden. Working in the town on Lake Traun also does Bergmann good mentally, especially since the death of her husband Luigi Blau, as she tells the "Krone".

"Krone": You spend your summers in Gmunden. Are you envied in Vienna?
Karin Bergmann: (laughs) I don't know. But I've always loved being in the Salzkammergut. I've bathed in all the Salzkammergut lakes because it was always easy to combine with the festival in Salzburg. My first lake was the Irrsee, I got there through Thomas Bernhard.

Bergmann at the Gmunden Municipal Theater

(Bild: Wenzel Markus/Markus Wenzel)

And now the Traunsee.
The most beautiful for me. It's a bit cold, but I've got used to it.

You've had a difficult few months. Your husband, the architect Luigi Blau, died just under a year ago. What has helped you?
It's wonderful when you have work and are distracted by it. Being together with artists has always been my purpose in life - alongside my private life. That helps you.

This year's theater production in Gmunden is Schnitzler's "Liebelei". After Franz-Xaver Mayr ("Reigen", 2022) and Moritz Franz Beichl ("Sturm", 2023), Anna Stiepani is directing this year's production.
Yes, finally a young female director. I've always said that if I did theater in Gmunden, it would only be with young leading teams. I've spent my whole life working with "twelve-men", from Andrea Breth to Luc Bondy, Peter Zadek and Claus Peymann. Now it's interesting to see how young people approach texts. I'm still learning from that too.

The productions in Gmunden are always co-productions with theaters in the provinces. Will the Burgtheater also be involved?
I always try to find a venue with a similar stage to the Stadttheater Gmunden. At the Burgtheater, that could just be the casino. We have to see if the new director is interested.

Have you already been in contact with Stefan Bachmann?
I know Bachmann very well because he did a fantastic production of Ferdinand Schmalz's contemporary "Jedermann" at the Burg.

Is something developing there?
I hope so.

You are also curating a project for the Capital of Culture.
Yes, we at the Salzkammergut Festwochen Gmunden are doing the "Letter Secrets" project: people from the region gave us letters and documents for a reading with Fritz Karl, Nicole Beutler and Marie-Luise Stockinger. The first evening covered the period from 1905 to 1945, spanning two world wars, the economic crisis and the Holocaust - an incredibly beautiful, entertaining lesson in democracy despite the difficult topics. The second evening will take place on October 19 and will deal with the history of the Second Republic in personal letters.

You chose walnut and strawberry at the ice cream stand. Why?
I couldn't decide whether to go for fruit or the other flavor, so I combined the two.

The Capital of Culture is in its half-time. Is the region benefiting from it?
I have noticed that the Capital of Culture is not only being talked about in the regional media, but also in many national media. I've seen so many exciting things since January and spoken to many enthusiastic people. The fact that there are critical voices locally - and always only locally - is part of it. I have the impression that it is a success story.