Over 100 thousand individuals paid a visit
Bad Hersfelder Festspiele Bids Farewell to Joern Hinkel with a Successful Season
The 74th Bad Hersfelder Festspiele, which concluded on August 18, was a resounding success, marking the final season for Intendant Joern Hinkel. The closing gala honoured Hinkel and presented the season's audience award.
Hinkel, who is pursuing new challenges, has been instrumental in attracting a younger audience and maintaining the festspiele's reputation during his tenure. His innovative ideas led to consistent success, notably surpassing 100,000 visitors in his final season.
The Mayor of Bad Hersfeld, Anke Hofmann, praised Hinkel's creative work and the popularity of the festival among a wide audience, including many young viewers. Performances for the festspiele took place at the Stiftsruine, Schloss Eichhof, and "Konrads".
Despite adverse July weather and a significant federal funding cut exceeding half a million euros, the audience demographics included broad appeal. Family-oriented productions like "Ronja Räubertochter" attracted about 17,700 attendees and achieved nearly 99% capacity. Other hits such as "Wie im Himmel" and "A Chorus Line" also performed strongly with high attendance and fill rates.
Hinkel's programming choices reflected innovation through diverse genres, from musicals to drama and family shows, which drew wide audience segments. His overall leadership results included maintaining the festspiele's reputation and visitor numbers despite external financial and weather-related pressures.
The combination of Schiller's "The Robbers" with the music of Die Toten Hosen was particularly celebrated and drew many visitors. Hinkel announced no concrete professional plans but hinted humorously at a switch to the automotive industry, suggesting instead a return to artistic roles.
Future challenges for the Bad Hersfelder Festspiele likely include addressing financial sustainability in light of funding cuts and maintaining audience engagement after Hinkel's departure, as the festival transitions to new leadership. The strong legacy of audience numbers and programming innovation sets a high benchmark for successors.
In an interview with HIT RADIO FFH, Hinkel expressed satisfaction with the season, despite initial weather difficulties. A full assessment of the 74th festival season will be made later, as the business year runs until the end of December.
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