Fräulein Else

A letter from Vienna, an impossible demand, a decision that isn't, and a young woman who is beginning to understand what the world wants from her. Leonie Böhm and Julia Riedler bring Arthur Schnitzler's Else into the present day. First published in 1924, Arthur Schnitzler's novel Fräulein Else is an astute analysis of abuse of power even a century later. Julia Riedler is now joining the Volksbühne ensemble at Rosa-Luxemburg-Platz and bringing her exceptional piece with her exceptional piece.

An express letter from Vienna destroys Else's vacation. Her mother pleads: The father speculated, again, 30,000 guilders are needed, immediately. Else is supposed to ask the rich art dealer Dorsday for the money and use it to save her father from prison. This Dorsday—older, richer, and aware of its power—is ready to help. He only has one condition: He wants to look at Else naked for a quarter of an hour.

Schnitzler wrote the story as a consistent, uninterrupted flow of thought from the inner perspective of a young woman who understands what is happening to her in real time. Leonie Böhm and Julia Riedler brought this stream of consciousness to the stage together and thought it forward in dialogue with the present: As a solo of unbelievable closeness that makes Else's questions about society sound just as loud today as they did a hundred years ago. Because what Else experienced back then is still happening.

Fräulein Else developed by Julia Riedlers and Leonie Böhms at the Volkstheater Wien is currently one of the most discussed productions in German-language theatre. Julia Riedler was named Actress of the Year 2025 for the role of Else and Leonie Böhm was honored for the best direction. The production won the Nestroy Prize, was invited to the Berliner Theatertreffen 2026 and can still be seen in Vienna, Cologne and Munich in addition to Berlin.