The decision had been eagerly awaited: Would Sibylle Broll-Pape be allowed to serve as director of the ETA Hoffmann Theater in Bamberg for two more years and thus until 2027? That was her wish given two seasons restricted by the pandemic. It has been clear since Wednesday evening: No, she must not. And that is understandable.
Given the allegations about the treatment of employees, it would have been difficult to explain an extension. The theater was able to refute the accusations regarding allegedly embellished occupancy figures, the various published figures turned out to be misleading at best. However, Broll-Pape was unable to refute the largely anonymous allegations against her leadership style. Which – admittedly – is also difficult: the critics do not dare to come out of cover because they fear they will be fired. And of course nobody recorded Broll-Pape’s alleged emotional outbursts. So statement stands against statement. However, what current and former employees of the SZ described seems credible. Incidentally, just like the statements of Broll-Pape’s advocates. With almost 80 employees, there are different perceptions.
The fact that the theater reacted to the reporting of the allegations with a kind of PR video to demonstrate the excellent togetherness from the point of view of the protagonists was on the one hand explainable – Broll-Pape threatened to lose the sovereignty of interpretation; their supporters felt unseen. On the other hand, the video had something of actionism six days before the decision to extend the contract. This election campaign ad could not prove that employees do not suffer from Broll-Pape’s management style.
The city councilors justified their decision with the desire for new artistic stimulation in the theater – which is only part of the truth. Yes, not all political camps were happy with the content of the house, some wished for a change. However, a few weeks ago and the allegations became known, it looked like Broll-Pape would continue to work, also because of her success. The vote against them obviously has something to do with the criticism.
However, it is right and responsible that Broll-Pape does not give up prematurely. This would have thrown the house into chaos. In addition, under a new director, as is usual in the theater, large parts of the ensemble lost their jobs. At the same time, it is now up to Broll-Pape to carry out the recently announced new survey on the working atmosphere. After all, if the mood is really as good as it portrays, there would be no reason to deviate from this request.