Struggling theaters: ever-increasing material costs
Culture
Salzburg theater is struggling with huge cost increases for materials and workshops. All of them are concerned with the question of whether the budgets that have been decided on will be kept? Probably not, say the experts. Whether savings alone can save the season is uncertain.
In the workshops of the State Theater in Salzburg-Aigen, preparations for the season are in full swing. Eight stage designs are being worked on here at the same time. Several departments are housed in the production house: carpenters, locksmiths, painters, electricians. They should implement the wishes and ideas of the stage designers. It used to be much easier, says workshop manager Markus Srienz. Now his department is struggling with a lack of replenishment of material and with ever higher prices.
Raw material always more expensive
Above all, the prices for wood and metal have an impact, some of which have more than increased. One solution is the recycling of stage sets or parts thereof. Costs can also be reduced with rescheduling, says Carl Philip von Maldeghem, director of the Salzburg State Theater.
There are similar concerns at Salzburg’s largest theater of the so-called independent scene – the playhouse in Salzburg-Nonntal. This runs its workshops in Wals (Flachgau).
Energy costs have also long been a black hole
One hundred thousand euros normally flow into stage construction every year. The theater management is currently expecting additional costs of 75,000 euros, a cost increase of 75 percent. In addition, there are unforeseeable increases in energy costs, says director Robert Pienz.
The theater managers are negotiating with the subsidy providers at the city, state and federal government to get more money – not just for the current season. Higher budgets for art and culture will also be needed for longer. So far, the donors of tax money have met with great understanding, according to the Schauspielhaus and Landestheater.