The multimedia department at the Burgtheater handles the full spectrum of media technology and production, from projections and live cutting to in-house recordings, filming, trailers, teasers and video design. The team provides subtitles for audience members and actors via the PROMPT app and archives and catalogues all materials in the Austrian Mediathek.
The department is also responsible for technical installations, set constructions, infrastructure planning, special events and maintenance of all multimedia equipment, ensuring smooth operation across all theater venues.
On-site at the Burgtheater, David Müllner reflected on the department’s extensive responsibilities and the modern video control room, which allows simultaneous operation by multiple team members in full sound isolation. He also shared insights into his personal journey, from his musical upbringing and the pioneering audio work of his grandfather to his own early experiences in theater and audio engineering.
Family, education and formative years
David Müllner grew up in a musical and artistic environment. His mother, Elisabeth “Sissi” Lurf, was a professional ballet dancer at the Vienna State Opera and later worked as a governess. Müllner began playing the piano at the age of 10 and occasionally worked as a background actor in theaters from age 18, an experience he enjoyed very much.
Immediately after finishing high school, he began studying Musik- und Theaterwissenschaft but soon realized he preferred a more practical approach. He then enrolled in the ELAK Program at the University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna (MDW), before switching to the Audio Engineering Study at MDW, which was quite new at the time and which he completed successfully.
During his studies, he gained experience at the Audio Department of the Vienna State Opera under Prof. Fritz and completed an internship at ORF (Austrian Broadcasting Corporation) at his at his father’s workplace. Horst Müllner, a media technician at ORF, provided guidance that deepened David Müllner’s understanding of sound and media production.
The roots of Müllner’s family in audio innovation reach back to his grandfather Hans Lurf, an early pioneer who conducted some of the first Hi-Fi recordings in the 1950s and 60s, including early quadraphonic experiments connected to the State Opera. Musicians and singers came from afar to benefit from his expertise, earning him a reputation as a local legend.
Early career milestones and professional breakthroughs
One day, a university colleague from MDW asked him if he would like to work as an audio engineer on director Peter Stein’s production of “Faust at the Expo 2000 Hannover,” a two-year project that became Müllner’s ideal entry into professional audio engineering.
He then worked at the audio company Impact Audio, handling spoken recordings and live sound reinforcement for about two years. At the same time, he joined NOA GmbH in project management, working on a mass digitization system for analog tape recordings— a project that also formed the basis of his master’s diploma.
David Müllner’s start at the Burgtheater
In 2003, Müllner began his work as Tonmeister (audio engineer) at the Burgtheater, which was then under the direction of Nikolaus Bachler. Christian Venghaus, head of the audio department at the time, immediately recognized Müllner would be a perfect fit, given his experience working on Stein’s “Faust” and his extensive theater background.
Parallel to his work at the Burgtheater, Müllner pursued a degree in Cultural Management at the Institute for Cultural Management (IKM), completing his studies between 2007 and 2009. During this time, and in the years that followed, he organized and led numerous contemporary music concerts and workshops commissioned by the Austrian Foreign Ministry in Syria, Jordan and Iran from 2007 to 2013. The goal of these projects was to foster artistic exchange between contemporary artists from Austria and those from the Near and Middle East — a collaboration and dialogue that continue to this day.
In 2009 to 2010, when Christian Venghaus moved to the Oper Zürich, Müllner became head of the audio department at the Burgtheater, under the artistic direction of Matthias Hartmann. In 2015, under Karin Bergmann, he additionally took on leadership of the multimedia department, overseeing both video and audio at the time. After the recent change in the theater’s artistic direction, with Stefan Bachmann taking over in the 2024–’25 season, the audio and multimedia departments were split again.
Since September, David Müllner serves, together with Andreas Rathammer, as head of the multimedia department, while Thomas Wegner now leads the audio department.
Multimedia equipment and operations
The Burgtheater uses Pixera Stumpfl media servers with Analog Way’s Aquilon series for playout — a scaling and routing matrix system. The servers themselves are hand-built by colleague Florian Dolzer, while the department holds the software license. The system will soon be extended to the Akademietheater. This setup ensures flexible playback, reliability and operational stability.
About 10 to 12 times a month, the Burgtheater uses the PROMPT app to provide subtitles, allowing audience members to follow performances on their smartphones in their preferred language. Introduced in 2019, this made the Burgtheater the first theater in Austria to offer such a mobile-accessible system, based on the same software the Vienna State Opera has installed on its seat displays.
The department oversees all in-house recordings, trailers, teasers and camera equipment. It manages content on media servers, produces its own video design for projections if requested and operates two editing suites along with the independent video control room.
Archive and cataloguing
Every premiere’s audio and video recordings are catalogued, with backups stored internally and externally via the Austrian Mediathek — a pioneering digital archiving system now also adopted by the Salzburg Festival, Vereinigte Bühnen Wien (Raimundtheater, Ronacher, Theater an der Wien) and Volkstheater. Since March 2013, all recordings have been digitally preserved for long-term archiving, and the collection is continuously expanded with future premieres. The archive currently contains over 2,000 recordings from premieres at the Burgtheater, Akademietheater, Vestibül and Kasino, as well as international guest performances, readings and special events.
Interested visitors can access the materials on-site at the Austrian Mediathek, and, after registration, they are also available online for scientific research through the Mediathek’s web portal. This ensures that the rich history of Austrian theater remains fully accessible and preserved for future generations.
Video control room and technical innovations
Three years ago, the Burgtheater’s video control room was modernized as part of a major renovation. It now accommodates up to four people working simultaneously: for example, a live cutter, a color grader, a stage assistant and an additional operator. Flexible network, SDI and LWL (fiber-optic) connections enhance both operational reliability and versatility.
Before the installation of the new control room, all necessary equipment had to be set up in the audience area for each performance. Space was extremely limited, and even a single misplaced cable could jeopardize a show. With the modernization, a permanent Front-of-House (FOH) system and the video control room were installed behind the rows of seats, optimizing the setup and accessibility of technical equipment.
The video control room can be made completely soundproof by closing its door, which is particularly beneficial for the FOH audio team seated directly in front. This allows the video operators to communicate freely during a performance without disturbing sound operations.
Stage design and architecture
At Burgtheater, the video and sound control room is situated behind the stalls, while a backup sound control room is on the second tier, positioned on the right, with the lighting control room on the left. The orchestra pit is configured differently depending on the production, sometimes seated and sometimes left open.
The Burgtheater’s stage has a non-standard projection format, with an aspect ratio closer to 4:3 than the usual 16:9 HD standard. This vertical emphasis reflects the stage’s architectural proportions and requires specific adjustments for precise alignment between projected images and scenic elements.
The stage itself extends 59 ft. (18 meters) up to the fly loft and 59 ft. down, featuring a large revolving cylinder with a diameter of 21 meters (~69 ft.) which enables complex and dynamic set designs.
Prospects & notable productions
For the coming years, Müllner sees the development of IP-based workflows, and further advances in 4K and 3D video and projection technology as central trends. The department will continue to play a key role in translating artistic visions into technical reality while ensuring the highest levels of operational reliability.
Current notable video productions at the Burgtheater and Akademietheater include “Der Fall McNeal,” where a 12-meter-wide, 5-meter-high LED wall serves as the stage set with continuous video playback.
The Burgtheater production “Heldenplatz” features two live camera operators. The live signal is edited in real time with a dedicated cutter handling the camera word, and a subway station was built on stage exclusively for the production.
“Katharina Blum” combines fully pre-produced video with actors interacting with their projected video images and lip-syncing live. “Der Zauberberg” similarly integrates fully produced video, with actors syncing their performance live to the projections.
At the Akademietheater, recent productions include “Traumdeutung,” in which a video and a song are created during the performance based on information provided by a randomly selected audience menber, and “Die Vegetarierin.” These works collectively demonstrate the department’s versatility in integrating live performance with advanced video technology.
Venues and schedule
The organization operates across four main venues — the Burgtheater, Akademietheater, Kasino, and Vestibül — as well as seven rehearsal stages (three in the Burgtheater and four in the Arsenal). Performances run daily from Sept. 1 to June 30 in both the Burgtheater and Akademietheater, with approximately 30 premieres each season, demonstrating the department’s broad operational scope.
Multimedia department team
David Müllner (head of media technology)
Andreas Rathammer (head of media production)
Victoria Aichhorn
Lukas Androsch
Marcell Bándi
Florian Dolzer
Markus Lubej
Mariano Margarit
Johannes Traun
Maximilian Wesener
With their expertise, vision, and commitment to innovation, David Müllner and Andreas Rathammer lead the Burgtheater’s multimedia department in transforming every performance into a fully immersive experience, ensuring that Austrian theater remains at the forefront of video and multimedia production.
Edited by James Sutton
