Carl, Carl

(Carl von Bernbrunn, 1787-1854)

   Manager, actor. Carl began his career as an actor at Vienna's Theater in der Josephstadt under the name Carl Meier. He left Vienna soon thereafter when he got engagements in numerous Munich theaters, among them the Ducal Garden Theater and the Isartortheater; he ultimately became director of the latter. In that position, he began to stage his own comedies, featuring himself as "Staberl," a variation on the Hanswurst character. Carl opened an acting school in Munich and in the 1820s emerged as that city's most significant theater artist. During summers, he leased theaters in Vienna to showcase his playwriting and acting talents; in 1826 he leased the Theater an der Wien, and the following year he leased the Theater in der Joephstadt, making his departure from Munich permanent. At the Theater in der Josephstadt, Carl attracted several outstanding talents to work with him, most notable among them Johann Nepomuk Nestroy and Wenzel Scholz. In 1838 he bought the Theater in der Leopoldstadt, establishing that theater as Vienna's most important venue for comedy by premiering more than 30 Nestroy comedies. Carl had the Theater in der Leopoldstadt leveled in 1847 and rebuilt it as the Carl Theater, where he continued to premiere Nestroy's work. When Carl died, Nestroy assumed the theater's directorship.