After two years of cancellations and corona restrictions, the open-air theaters wanted to play freely again. There is no euphoria, but satisfaction. Corona continues to cause problems.
Ralswiek (dpa / mv) - The half-time balance at the theater open airs in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania is cautiously positive. "The mood is good, the team is healthy, so there is really no reason to complain," said Anna-Theresa Hick, head of the Störtebeker Festival, the German Press Agency. "Since the holidays have come, the number of viewers has also increased, which of course makes us very happy." In the first season after two years of the Corona compulsory break, like other organizers, there were fewer visitors overall at the largest open-air theater in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania.
The director of the Piraten Open Air in Grevesmühlen, Peter Venzmer, made a similar statement. But the numbers went up gradually. Like Hick, he reports that guests are booking at shorter notice. In addition, they kept their money more together, for example with beer and bratwurst. After criticism of the volume, the pyrotechnics were adjusted. Performance bans could therefore be prevented.
While in Grevesmühlen the half-time is not until the beginning of August, the first half of the season ends this weekend for the Müritz Saga in Waren, just like at Störtebeker. "Thanks to the weather, we can't complain at all," said director Nils Düwell. The vacationers are there and the influx is no different than in previous years. It remains to be seen how many paying guests will come, as many have now redeemed their tickets originally booked for 2020. Now is not the time for big celebrations. He hopes for the end of August when the season is over. Then you will also see what the bottom line will be after increased costs.
In the past, the team traditionally celebrated the mountain festival at the Störtebeker Festival. "We'll skip that," Hick said. The reason is that there have already been a handful of corona cases in the team. For several weeks, however, all have been negative. Small actors who tested positive were sent home at the time. The infected but symptom-free actors played in consultation with the health department and under additional precautions. That's why "a lot of defamation is taking place in our private lives, even though we're healthy, we're testing, we still have the hygiene measures up and we're just being careful."
The Vineta Festival on Usedom has also been shaken by Corona. So far, ten actors have had to be replaced because of an infection, as the Vorpommersche Landesbühne announced in the middle of the week. Director Andreas Flick has already stepped in. There were five changes in the cast of the Wolgast Summer Theater. The organizers nevertheless drew a positive half-time balance. The Vineta Festival approached the pre-Corona numbers among viewers.
The Theater und Orchester GmbH Neubrandenburg/Neustrelitz also had to fill several roles in their open-air opera "Carmen" due to a number of corona cases, including the main role of Carmen. According to its own statements, the Theater Neustrelitz, including the last performance on the penultimate weekend in July, has again reached the attendance level of the pre-Corona period.
