The Maxim Gorki Theater is breaking its piggy bank

Black zero at the end of the year

But Senator for Culture Sarah Wedl-Wilson gave the all-clear in the Culture Committee of the House of Representatives this Monday. That’s how she puts it herself. An increased financial need was identified a little late last year. But that can be explained by the general cuts. And since the Gorki Theater has reserves of two million euros, the artistic projects are secured and one can expect a black zero at the end of the year.

Artistically, the Gorki looks very good. The practice of a post-migrant theater in the center of the capital has proven successful. In the thirteen years under director Shermin Langhoff, the stage has not only developed its own clear profile, but has also set standards. In order to come to this conclusion, you don’t have to agree with everything that is on the game board. Because there are plenty of decent offers elsewhere.

Difficult restart

Shermin Langhoff is retiring after this season. She has achieved great things; space utilization was almost 95 percent in 2025. But her leadership style was also an issue. Senator Wedl-Wilson is confident that the house can be handed over to Langhoff’s successor Çağla Ilk on August 1st in a “healthy condition”.

The upcoming director is viewed critically because she has previously been more active in the visual arts and less in the theater. In 2023 she was curator of the German pavilion at the Venice Biennale and in the management of the Kunsthalle Baden-Baden. At Gorki she took part in the interdisciplinary Berlin Autumn Salon. Çağla Ilk was appointed by then Senator for Culture Joe Chialo, who resigned in May last year.

Lawsuit against the Senate

The excitement surrounding the Maxim Gorki Theater shows how nervous the scene is. What should happen next in terms of cultural policy? How will deficits be compensated for when there are no reserves left? In other houses too, people save themselves over time and look forward to the next rounds with trepidation.

One of the structural problems that not only burdens the Gorki is the workshop issue. The staff council of the house and the main staff council of the state of Berlin are suing the state administrative court against the culture senator. The cultural administration is currently examining whether the workshops of the state-owned theaters should be merged for cost reasons. The lawsuit states that the staff representatives were not properly involved in this issue. Wedl-Wilson contradicts this representation.

The consulting firm Actori, headquartered in Munich, which specializes in the cultural sector, was commissioned with the evaluation. The Senate wants to achieve savings effects. A report should be available by summer for the theater workshops and possible synergies. Matthias Lilienthal, designated artistic director of the Volksbühne, thinks little of it.

His house would also be affected by a merger. For Lilienthal, the traditional Volksbühne workshops are “paradise on earth,” and he raves about the commitment and creativity of those who work there. And he has strong doubts that a new large-scale operation would work more cheaply for the state-owned spoken theaters Volksbühne, Maxim Gorki, Theater an der Parkaue and Deutsches Theater. But he can imagine working with Gorki in the future.

However, nothing will move any time soon. In September, Berlin will elect a new House of Representatives. According to the surveys, it is currently unclear who will be able to take over the reins of government and who will be responsible for cultural policy. But we can hear from various factions that next autumn it will be about the budget and possible new austerity measures again. The excitement surrounding the Maxim Gorki Theater and its stability now seems like just a prelude.