About
brut is a production and performance venue for the performing arts in Vienna and, since its founding in 2007, has been one of the defining venues of the independent performance, dance and theatre scene. The brut programme is characterised by experimentation and interdisciplinarity, showcasing the diversity and variety of the independent scene. In addition to productions in the theatre space, brut Wien also realises site-specific projects and focuses on artistic creative processes, dialogue with the city, collaboration with neighbouring art disciplines and theoretical reflection, whilst playing a pioneering role in the field of accessibility in theatre.
Numerous independent artists from Vienna and Austria have been accompanied by brut as a co-production partner for many years. A good share of brut’s productions are international co-productions touring prestigious festivals and venues across Europe. Vice versa, brut enriches and stimulates the Viennese scene by inviting international guest performances, realising co-productions with artists from all over Europe, and committing itself to continuous engagement in EU networks.
History
Künstlerhaus: From exhibition venue to independent theatre
The Vienna Künstlerhaus was built in 1868 to be a centre for social gatherings and exhibitions for Austria’s oldest still existing association of artists. Beginning in 1882, the historical building from the times of the Vienna Ring Road style was enhanced by two side wings to create the space needed for the first big international art exhibition to take place there. In 1949, a cinema was opened in the left side wing, originally called the German Hall. More than 20 years later, in September of 1972, the building’s right wing, once the French Hall, was rented out to establish a theatre venue. Until 1985, the right wing of the Künstlerhaus accommodated the Komödiantenhaus-Theater. In 1987, an initiative to re-open the theatre as the Political Stage of Künstlerhaus foundered on the decision of the then city councillor for culture, Ursual Pasterk, to instead open the venue to all independent companies along with another vacant venue at the Vienna Concert Hall (Konzerthaus), under the common name dietheater.
dietheater: A stage for the independent theatre scene
As a common umbrella for the Künstlerhaus and the Konzerthaus theatres, dietheater was established on 31 January 1989 as a sponsor organisation for the Wiener Theaterverein, with Christian Pronay as the artistic director and manager. From 1989 to 2007, dietheater presented the works of independent Austrian theatre companies, predominantly showing productions by Vienna-based artists. In addition, dietheater’s annual imagetanz festival provided an important forum for the Vienna dance scene.
brut Wien: The founding of an international co-production house
In the summer of 2006, the Theaterverein Wien placed a call for applications to find a new artistic director for the two venues at Künstlerhaus and Konzerthaus. The founding artistic directors of the institution now named brut were Thomas Frank and Haiko Pfost, whose directorship was characterised by the restructuring of brut into an internationally oriented co-production space for the independent performance, dance and theatre scene. From 2007 to 2015, numerous Austrian productions were developed, presented and organised at brut, accompanied by international guest performances as well as concerts and parties.
brut all over Vienna: The whole city becomes a stage
From autumn 2015 until the end of the 2025/26 season, Kira Kirsch took over as Artistic Director. Following the move out of its main venue at the Künstlerhaus in 2017 due to a complete refurbishment, brut focused mainly on staging productions at various temporary venues, site-specific projects, dialogue with the city, process-oriented work and collaborations with institutions from related disciplines. Under the slogan brut all over Vienna, brut staged performances at around 100 venues across 19 Viennese districts. In addition, brut carried out a complete refurbishment of the venue at Zieglergasse 25 in the 7th district and renamed it studio brut. From March 2021 until the end of the 2025/26 season, brut Wien was based at Nordwestbahnstraße 8–10 in the 20th district, transforming the temporarily repurposed industrial hall into a vibrant theatre space known as brut nordwest.
House of Performing Arts: A new theatre for brut in Neu Marx
In 2019, it became clear that moving back into the Künstlerhaus was impossible due to the steep increase in renovation costs. In September 2020, the question of a new permanent venue was resolved: The City of Vienna is renovating the listed building of the former Central Bank in St. Marx (Karl-Farkas-Gasse 16) in the 3rd district and having it converted for use as a theatre. The first major stage productions as well as the imagetanz festival 2027 are expected to be staged there in autumn 2027. From autumn 2026 until the opening of the new venue at Karl-Farkas-Gasse 16 – the House of Performing Arts – brut will present performances at various temporary venues, primarily in the 3rd district, in the immediate vicinity of the new theatre, and at studio brut at Zieglergasse 25 in the 7th district. In addition, brut has already rented office space at Karl-Farkas-Gasse 18, 1030 Vienna.
Since 2024, Stephanie Höltschl has been the Commercial Director of brut Wien, and in July 2026 Tomasz Kireńczuk took over as Artistic Director.
brut receives its main financial support from the City of Vienna’s Department of Cultural Affairs (MA 7). brut is a non-profit limited liability company (GmbH); the Artistic Director is appointed by the Vienna City Councillor for Culture, acting in an official capacity, on the recommendation of the Vienna Theatre Association.
