Monika Gruber’s statements polarize people – some celebrate her for her “honesty”, while others accuse her of “incitement against the Greens”. In the summer she caused an uproar in Erding with the demonstration against the traffic light coalition’s draft heating law. How does she rate her participation today?
Monika Gruber was a shining star in the firmament of the Bavarian cabaret scene for a long time, regularly sold out halls and was a welcome guest at events and on talk shows.
But the comedian has now become a controversial figure in the political struggle between the right and the left, in which she appears to be clearly positioning herself. Did that hurt her career? Five months after the heating demonstration in Erding, how does she feel about her participation?
Monika Gruber “doesn’t want to become her own caricature”
A look at the comments on the grubber’s Instagram account makes it clear how much she polarizes the public. “Until the xenophobic agitation, she was one of my tops, but unfortunately a top sometimes turns into a flop,” writes a critic about the 52-year-old.
However, one fan sees it very differently: “An established woman who doesn’t bend, but likes to hold up the mirror. Funny, cheeky.”
Monika Gruber won’t be on the stage for much longer; she has announced her last show in Munich for the beginning of next year.
Why does the artist turn her back on cabaret? She made it clear in an interview with the “Süddeutsche Zeitung” that she “didn’t want to become her own caricature.” “What if at some point people say: She used to be funnier, livelier, the grubber?”
Summit at demonstration against the “heating ideology”
However, her statement does not only refer to the future; former admirers are already viewing her critically because of her statements about politics and society. It all started during the corona pandemic, when Monika Gruber publicly made her displeasure with the measures clear.
The (provisional) highlight came in the summer of 2023 with a demonstration against the “heating ideology” in Erding, which, thanks to the Gruber’s participation, attracted nationwide attention and mobilized 13,000 people.
Gruberin about Söder and Aiwanger at the Erdinger demo: “It was a mistake”
“Erding cost me three years of my life,” says the 52-year-old looking back on her participation in the demo, but adds with her usual sharp tongue, “but thank God the years are subtracted.”
Does Monika Gruber see the event, which drew applause from the AfD ranks, in a different light five months later? The cabaret artist makes it clear that a big wrong decision was made in Erding: the invitation of Markus Söder and Hubert Aiwanger.
Their appearance was “a mistake” because it meant that most of the reporting was about the two politicians.
Gruber is rejected in the industry
The cabaret artist is now feeling the effects of her public statements, as she emphasized to “Süddeutsche”, and is experiencing rejection in the industry and receiving criticism from colleagues such as her former companion Christian Springer.
“I don’t hate going back. I can’t do that at all. “That’s not how I was raised,” explains Monika Gruber.
Will things calm down after her stage farewell? Hardly, because even with her new book “Welcome to the Wrong Film” she doesn’t hold back with her opinions. And her fans will certainly continue to support her.
