Das Zelt vows restart as Swiss touring theatre sinks into debt

Swiss touring theatre Das Zelt is facing millions of francs in debt, with artists awaiting fees, employees unpaid and audiences left with cancelled performances, SRF reported. The company has operated across Switzerland year-round for more than two decades, presenting comedy, music and theatre.

Musician Remo Forrer is among the many artists who have not been paid. Some are waiting for tens of thousands of francs. Forrer said he no longer expected to receive the money, although he still hoped it would come.

The debts include wages, rent, artists’ fees and employees’ social security contributions. Adrian Steiner, Das Zelt’s founder and managing director, acknowledged that the total exceeds the 2.5 million francs previously reported in the press but declined to give a precise figure.

Steiner said the downturn began last November when a promised investment loan was not paid out. This caused a temporary liquidity shortage at the beginning of the year. He said the company had fixed contracts worth 20 times the amount of its outstanding debt enforcement claims, but reports that wages had been paid late triggered a downward spiral.

Steiner insisted that Das Zelt was not finished but had been brought to its knees. He said investors were involved, without naming them, and maintained that the touring theatre would restart in November with staff he planned to bring back.

Forrer has withdrawn from Das Zelt and is now touring independently. Other artists are also performing only against advance payment. Steiner said it would become clear within a few weeks whether Das Zelt would rise again or be reduced to ashes.