The diversity of reading

Thirty years ago, Christoph Reisner from Göttingen visited one of the biggest literary events of the time in London. There were only few such events worldwide back then. Upon his return to Germany, he himself wanted to create a festival spanning several days. Thus, in 1992, the Göttingen Literary Autumn was born. “The GLA started out as a series of readings,” recalls the current director Johannes-Peter Herberhold. “Between November and February, individual readings were held in Göttingen.” Starting with the sixth GLA in 1998, he says, the series of readings became a ten-day event that is staged right after Frankfurt Book Fair. The GLA is now one of the largest literature festivals in the German-speaking world. In addition to readings by authors such as Günter Wallraff, the festival also offers entertainment with comedians such as Anke Engelke.

Record number of visitors

Last year’s event attracted a record attendance of 19,800 visitors: “That’s huge for a region like Göttingen,” says Johannes-Peter Herberhold. He’s happy that even the coronavirus pandemic didn’t cause all too great a setback for the GLA. “We’ve still been able to hold the festival the last three years.” The reason, he says, was the favorable timing during the fall weeks, when the regulations were relaxed. Although the number of visitors was reduced in 2020 and 2021, the director is all the more pleased about the crowds that flocked to the event in 2022.

A new format has also emerged: “In 2020, we thought about offering some sort of alternative, as it was still uncertain whether we could put on a live event due to the lockdowns,” recalls the director. Now anyone interested can also watch all the readings at the GLA online with just a single ON-AIR ticket. “The response has been very good. We definitely want to continue this new medium.”

Not only readings

In addition to the literature festival, the GLA’s organizers stage other readings in and around Göttingen. Thanks to the support of sponsors such as the AKB Foundation, cultural events of a larger nature are also possible: “Last year, the actor Christian Brückner performed with his Elbtonal Quartet at the PS.SPEICHER in Einbeck. The audience was enthusiastic about the percussion event ‘Moby Dick,’ and there were even standing ovations at the end,” says Johannes-Peter Herberhold. A similar event is planned again, he adds.