The actress and dubbing artist Carolin Hartmann belongs to the ensemble of the Munich Volkstheater. There she can currently be seen in several roles, including in “The Suicide”, her favorite play, as she says. Another piece will be added for her on Friday, when “Feeling Faust”, directed by Claudia Bossard, will premiere.
Monday: Funday
The Café Jasmin on the corner of Augustenstrasse and Steinheilstrasse is a cozy place to start the week.
(Photo: Catherine Hess)
In my job, it doesn’t matter what day of the week it is. Mondays, however, are special. Strangely enough, they always have this strange negative bell dangling over them and feel like they’re there to stumble into the week that has just begun. It’s a good thing that Café Jasmin on Steinheilstraße offers me the perfect start. There you can not only pretzel yourself in the comfortable armchairs, no, you can also eat super-delicious cakes. My recommendation is the vegan peanut banana cake. The real highlight in “Café Jasmin” is my dear friend Martina, who has been running this café for many years and with her hearty smile transforms my grumpy Monday into a splendid funday.
Tuesday: Text sports training
Carolin Hartmann plays in the comedy “The Suicide”, which is currently her favorite play.
(Photo: Gabriela Neeb)
After the start of the week was successful, I dedicate myself to the text work. In my high-performance phases, I played thirteen plays at the same time at the Munich Volkstheater. Such texts want to be repeated and refreshed. I like to compare my pieces to different sports. “The Suicide” is like tennis, “The Merchant of Venice” like volleyball and “Bunbury – Serious is Life” like football. All to see at the Munich Volkstheater! Once you have mastered all the rules and have the appropriate sports equipment ready, you don’t hit a handball with a golf club.
Wednesday: Everything in sync
The healer Bronwyn (Nazanin Boniadi) and the elf Arondir (Ismael Cruz Cordova) share a forbidden romance in “The Rings of Power”.
(Photo: Ben Rothstein/Amazon Studios)
Autumn is my favorite season. After the rehearsal, I cycle through the Geiselgasteigstrasse, which is covered with colorful leaves. I bought an e-bike to go to the dubbing studio on the Bavaria Filmstadt site. Up the Giesinger Berg without any effort, wonderful! Not that e-bikes are for older people – I’m a 35-year-old e-bike owner and proud of it. After the work is done, I sit on the sofa with my partner, ideally the fire crackles in the fireplace and I (coincidentally) have no rehearsals and performances. Time to finally watch the final episode of The Rings of Power – The Lord of the Rings series. Not only out of interest, but also because I’m a little bit proud to have dubbed one of the main roles with the healer Bronwyn.
Thursday: Music to escape
Sometimes only music helps, preferably from friends: composer and pianist Martin Kohlstedt.
(Photo: Christian Endt)
Once a week I do my typical “office Hartmann day”. For me, activities such as washing clothes, vacuum cleaning and shopping are not typical for an office day. I have to admit I hate shopping. I buy everything that I find tasty and appealing, completely haphazardly, only to get angry again because I only took the smallest backpack with me for my “oh-just-quick-one-two-things-errand”. In such moments, only one thing helps me: the wonderful music of Martin Kohlstedt, whom I have known since childhood. No piano music moves me as much as his. As children, the two of us had the completely utopian dream (at least that’s what we thought) to “escape” from our small Thuringian village in order to go out into the big, wide world as a pianist and an actress. Today Martin is one of the most sought-after German musicians and is currently on tour. Tomorrow, October 28th, his new single “LUV” will be released, which I can tell you exclusively.
Friday: Myth Faust
The public premiere celebration is always part of the Volkstheater.
(Photo: Stephan Rumpf)
Today is a nerve-wracking day. A day when my legs are constantly shaking, my pulse is racing and I can’t eat or drink because I’m so excited. Yes, today I will premiere at the Munich Volkstheater with “Feeling Faust”, directed by the great Claudia Bossard. Days like this are always very special. My main question that accompanies me today is: “Why the hell am I doing this job of all things? Why do I only do this fuss voluntarily?”. I have to answer numerous “Toi Toi Toi wishes” with “Anke” or heart emojis, because under no circumstances should these congratulations be answered with the usual “Thank you”. Why not? Old theatrical superstition. That brings misfortune. After the performance there will be a public premiere party. Many of my friends are scattered all over Germany, which makes me all the happier that they often come to Munich for such occasions. Later that evening I’ll have a last “nightcap” with Anna, the most charming pub owner I know, at the “Zenetti Pils”, a quaint little pub across from the new Munich Volkstheater.
Saturday: make amends
Alexandre Jollien and Bernard Campan in the tragic comedy “Happiness on a Scale of 1 to 10”.
(Photo: X Rental)
Today’s phenomenon is, I think, not entirely unknown. A premiere, like a wedding, a milestone birthday, a big event or other special events in life, demands a lot from you. The big day itself flies by. The typical “first hole” is noticeable today. Tired, worn out and also a bit hungover, I watch the long-planned film “Happiness on a scale from 1 to 10”, in which one of my oldest friends, Jonas Lauenstein, lends his voice to the main actor. Later I get vegetarian Gyoza and “Mamas Ramen” from my favorite Vietnamese “Ca Go Pho” on Kapuzinerstraße. A perfect “reparation” for my body.
Sunday: Active idleness
The loud sound of Sunday: the bells of the church of St. Andreas at Zenettistraße 46 are part of the atmosphere. But not for some either.
(Photo: Stephan Rumpf)
With the roof terrace door wide open, in the morning I hear the sound of the bells of the St. Andreas Church not far away. As “Bavaria’s loudest bells” (according to a Google review), these five cast steel bells have to withstand quite a shitstorm. I think the sound is wonderful when I’m standing in the sun with my freshly brewed coffee in my hand. The bells create a real Sunday atmosphere. The holy day when work rests. That’s also my motto today: “Today I’m not doing anything.” For me, however, “doing nothing” most likely means that I will continue to write my radio play series, start the book recommended to me by Ocean Vuong “On Earth We Are Briefly Great”, walk with my friend Helene on the Isar or go to the cinema. That makes “doing nothing” somehow void and yet wonderful at the same time. And before I know it, it’s Monday again.
The actress Carolin Hartmann, who was born in Thuringia, has been living in Munich since 2015 and is part of the ensemble of the Munich Volkstheater, where she was and is seen in numerous roles. She studied at the Ernst Busch Academy of Dramatic Arts. In addition to her work in the theater, the 35-year-old can be heard as a voice actress in a number of series and films. She is particularly proud of the roles of Queen “Alicent” in “The House of the Dragon – Game of Thrones” and the healer “Bronwyn” in “The Rings of Power”.