What is the conductor’s test and who has one of the best views in all of Munich? The 20 or so alumnae and alumni of the Elite Network were given the answers to these and other exciting questions during the guided tour of the Gärtnerplatztheater in February 2025 and were also able to take a look inside rooms that no outsider would otherwise get to see.
Many people are probably familiar with the view from the auditorium onto the stage of the Gärtnerplatztheater, but the view from the stage into the audience is reserved for only a few. The participants in the alumni tour are therefore amazed at this unusual view of the auditorium, which is normally occupied by almost 900 visitors. As Heiko Pfützner, the technical director of the theater, who personally led the tour, points out with obvious pride: The theater is almost sold out for every performance.
The participants are particularly fascinated by the otherwise hidden world around and behind the visible stage. In the midst of preparations for the evening's performance, Heiko Pfützner, who knows every one of the round about 600 spotlights in the theater personally, tells us for example that sometimes tickets for the central box are still available at very short notice even when the theater is otherwise sold out. The box is reserved for the Bavarian state government but if they don’t use it, tickets become available at short notice. With regard to the gigantic stage sets, which stand closely together in the concealed stage area, the head of technology smiles as he talks about the conductor's test. As props and costumes can only be seen by the audience from a certain distance, small imperfections are not a problem. The conductor's position is the ideal place to determine whether any improvements need to be made in order to create the perfect illusion for the audience.
The participants experience another fantastic view when Heiko Pfützner takes us into his personal workspace, the painter's hall of the theater at the very top, directly under the gabled roof of the building. In addition to its ballroom-like dimensions, it also offers a breathtaking view of Munich. The stage sets are lifted directly from the stage into the painters' hall via a special elevator, where repairs can be carried out with skilled brushstrokes. However, the theater's orchestra also has a say when it comes to the most beautiful place to work. Their rehearsal room at a lofty height with a view as far as the Alps marks the end of our tour.
After this truly breathtaking tour - the theater's labyrinth of stairs certainly made us break out in a sweat - there is a convivial finale with drinks and tapas in the Cordo Bar just around the corner.
If you haven't yet had the pleasure of a guided tour of the Gärtnerplatztheater, you can find short videos and a podcast on the theater's homepage that let you have a look behind the scenes.
Text: Elite Network of Bavaria
