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“Pre-sales went much better than last year,” says Thierry Ueltschi (47), OC President of the Volkstheater Festival Meiringen in the Bernese Oberland. Cantonal police officer Ueltschi said that after the festival was canceled for two years due to the corona virus, theater enthusiasts are still hesitant to attend larger events and theatrical performances. In his spare time he has been in theater groups for many years and is co-founder of the «Glinggige» theater group in Haslital. This year, the OK team expects a much higher number of visitors for the eight theater plays by the selected theater groups.
Award for small folk theater groups
In addition to the “golden meringue” competition for selected theater groups, the festival also offers workshops, cinema and food in the temporary theater village. In addition to performances, the Volkstheater Festival has become a popular meeting place for many theater enthusiasts from all over Switzerland for exchange and networking. This is what Meiringen is destined for as a popular holiday destination, with its unique theater in the tram hall, Ueltschi says.
Katrin Brunner, 61, longtime theater actress and head of the Wehntal stage since 2018, agrees. For the theater festival in Meiringen for 2021, the Wehntal stage from Zurich Unterland was selected with the play “Dying for Beginners”. “The disappointment when the festival had to be canceled due to Corona was great. An invitation to a performance at the Volkstheater Festival means an award for small Volkstheater groups,” said the Head of the Wehntal Theater.
Ambitious amateurs for discerning audiences in communities
This year, it will only sit in the audience, watch some performances of selected theater groups and meet with other theater lovers. But he hopes the Wehntal stage will have the opportunity to perform at the festival in the Bernese Oberland instead of the gymnasium in Zurich Unterland next year. He knows how much effort small theater groups put into their performances: “When the final curtain falls, new preparations begin with the play selection committee”.
The amateur actors of the Wehntal scene are currently in their spare time rehearsing twice a week with professional director Brigitte Schmidlin for Claudia Gysel’s new crime comedy “Manual.” Everything from stage design to sound and lighting technology and the catering concept needs to be planned and organized by club members in time for the September premiere. “We have an ambitious goal of constantly improving ourselves and we have a demanding audience. Even amateur theater these days has to offer something on stage. The audience is no longer content with coffee and sandwiches during the break,” says Brunner.
High art with a lot of effort and passion
“The amateur scene in the theater industry is underestimated,” says Simone Brunner, 53, who won the best actress award at the Volkstheater Meiringen last year. In 2022, together with his wife Heinz Brunner, “Runter zum Fluss” for two appeared on the stage of the blinded theater in Meiringen’s old tram depot, which was renovated and turned into a theatre. Simone Brunner was already on stage at the first Volkstheater Festival in 2019, and she thinks the level of performances has risen again and the term amateur theater no longer does performing theaters justice.
Playing a little “Verchleiderlis” isn’t enough for a theater group today – even if you’re performing in a parish hall, a gymnasium or a community center in any community in Switzerland. “From props to stage design or changing professional directors – what theater groups today showcase on stage is high art, often with a lot of effort and passion,” says veteran actress Brunner.
“Golden Meringue” in the living room of last year’s winner
Simone Brunner grew up in a theater-loving family and debuted at the age of four. Unlike many other theater actresses, she currently earns some money acting with her husband, Heinz Brunner, through small film roles, commercials or theatrical performances, such as at campsites or private events. But Hollywood hasn’t knocked on its door yet. Simone Brunner had never expected it either. “I enjoy taking roles and playing them on stage as authentically as possible,” she says. One of the best compliments for him is when he dresses up as a man and is not recognized by acquaintances in the audience, or when he appears on stage as a villain or murderer and hears him “punish” the audience with his role.
Even if last year’s “golden meringue” award meant a lot to Simone Brunner, and the award from Meiringen was in the living room, the actress says: “For me, after all rehearsals and every performance, the icing on the cake is always the audience’s applause.”
The “Golden Meringue” award as the final highlight
In addition to the eight theatrical performances selected in the tram hall, various program elements will again take place in the theater village and the Meiringen cinema at the Meiringen Volkstheater Festival 2023 from Wednesday 14 June to Sunday 18 June. Finally, on Sunday, the “Golden Meringue” award will be given in the categories of best actress, best production and best director by the jury chaired by the actor and “Volkstheater Festival godfather” Beat Schlatter. For the full program and more information: www.volkstheaterfestival.ch
Source : Blick
I am Dawid Malan, a news reporter for 24 Instant News. I specialize in celebrity and entertainment news, writing stories that capture the attention of readers from all walks of life. My work has been featured in some of the world’s leading publications and I am passionate about delivering quality content to my readers.
