Corona summer wave, war in Ukraine and a waning interest in cultural events – it was not an easy season for the Bad Hersfeld Festival. Intendant Hinkel still draws a cautiously positive balance.
Bad Hersfeld (dpa/lhe) – Despite a lower capacity utilization compared to the previous year, the Bad Hersfeld Festival was satisfied with the audience response this season. A total of more than 75,600 people attended the events, which corresponds to a capacity of 105,868 tickets and a total occupancy rate of more than 71 percent, the festival management announced on Sunday. This year’s closing gala of the festival was on the schedule for the evening.
This summer, this year’s opening piece “Notre Dame” and the revival of “The Dead Poets’ Society”, which artistic director Joern Hinkel staged in the monastery ruins, proved to be popular successes. Both came to an occupancy rate of 86 percent. On the other hand, the revival of the musical “Goethe!” as well as the supporting program with concerts and readings fell short of expectations despite the summer weather. “We may have also noticed that fewer people in Germany find their way to theater and cultural events,” Hinkel suspected. In addition, after two years of Corona, many families went on vacation for the first time.
In view of the difficult situation in the cultural sector across Germany, one can be satisfied with the result, says Hinkel. “When the plans for this summer were made, everyone expected that we would experience a “normal” summer, nobody could have imagined last year that times would get even more difficult and that everything would be completely different,” explained the director . “Corona summer wave, war in Ukraine, rising prices, these are sad factors that ultimately made planning unpredictable.”
It is a miracle that the festival could have taken place almost without a hitch, especially since the Corona summer wave messed up all plans. There were constant line-up changes on and behind the stage. “The fact that only one performance had to be canceled in the almost two-month performance period of the festival is thanks to a phenomenal, motivated ensemble and the entire festival team, who, together with the helpers from the city administration, institutions and clubs, have achieved breathtaking things,” emphasized Hinkel .
