Elisabeth II - not a comedy - by Thomas Bernhard

"All people have a desire for theater, for depravity" (Thomas Bernhard)

Sven-Eric Bechtolf | Rudolph Herrenstein
Christian Higer | Richard
Gunda Schanderer | Miss Zallinger
Lutz Zeidler | Doctor Guggenheim

David Bösch | Production
Patrick Bannwart | Stage
Bianca Stummer | Costumes

The industrial magnate Herrenstein, 87, has been confined to a wheelchair since an accident. He lives with two employees in a stately apartment on Vienna's Opernring with a view of the State Opera. Vienna is unbearable for him, so he packs his bags and wants to escape to Altaussee. Or to the Semmering. But he can't stand either Semmering or Altaussee any better than the city. When the Queen of England comes on a state visit, all sorts of acquaintances invite themselves to Herrenstein's house to see the Queen from his balcony.

"Elisabeth II" is Thomas Bernhard's penultimate play and the one he did not see performed during his lifetime, so it is also a kind of legacy, as it once again explores Bernhard's entire theatrical cosmos - from high comedy to deadly despair.

The role of Herrenstein is embodied by Sven-Eric Bechtolf, long-time castle actor, multiple Nestroy Prize winner, former director of the Salzburg Festival, who has already presented Bernhard and Kafka congenially in Gmunden several times in recent years. The play will be directed by the director of the Landestheater Linz.

A cooperation between the Salzkammergutfestwochen Gmunden 2026 and the Landestheater Linz