Following the sudden departure of Markus Hinterhäuser at the end of March, the Salzburg Festival has announced that Karin Bergmann will take up the position of Interim Artistic Director with immediate effect. She will oversee this year’s festival’s artistic direction and will remain in the role until a permanent appointment is made, reportedly by 2027.
Hinterhäuser, who had led the Festival since 2016, was terminated early by the board following “irreconcilable differences of opinion and disagreements”, despite his contract running until September. Over the ten seasons of his artistic directorship, he steered the Festival through a period widely regarded as among the most successful in recent decades, both artistically and financially.
The decision left the Festival without leadership in the run-up to the 106th edition, which opens in mid-July, and prompted speculation around who might succeed Hinterhäuser. The Director of the Salzburg Whitsun Festival, mezzo-soprano Cecilia Bartoli, was one such mooted name, prompting her to issue her own press release to say that she had turned down the offer.
“While deeply honoured by this expression of confidence, my current artistic commitments unfortunately do not allow me to accept such a significant responsibility concurrently,” Bartoli said. She will remain in charge of the Salzburg Whitsun Festival until 2031.
Bergmann, whose career has included being appointed the first female Artistic Director of the Vienna Burgtheater, is currently in charge of the literature and theatre departments at the Salzkammergut Festival in Gmunden. “I take on this task with great respect for the responsibility it entails, and with the acknowledgement of the great artistic achievement of Markus Hinterhäuser. Now, to my own surprise, I will be responsible for the artistic directorship of the Salzburg Festival for the time being,” Bergmann said at the press conference on Wednesday.
“I will execute this office in my own way, drawing on my own experience, but also with great respect for the artistic profile the Salzburg Festival has built during recent years. In doing so, prudence, reliability and a culture of dignity, respect and trust are particularly important to me.”
See the full 2026 Salzburg Festival listings.
