Sarah Wipauer

Sarah Wipauer

Born in Vienna in 1986, Sarah Wipauer studied Sinology and Comparative Literature at the University of Vienna. Her writing has been published in literary magazines and anthologies. She has received numerous grants and scholarships, including a place at the Klagenfurt Literature Course in 2011. In 2017, she was a finalist in the 25th edition of the Open Mike literary competition, and in 2025, she was a finalist in the FM4 Wortlaut writing competition. In 2019, she gave a reading at the Ingeborg Bachmann Prize in Klagenfurt.

Fehlende Gespenster

What lies beneath Vienna? Among other things, an underground pneumatic “pneumatic tube” system developed to transport corpses following the opening of the Central Cemetery in 1874. Its last “passenger” was supposedly Niki Lauda. And that is just one of the absurd stories told by Merian, a mysterious young woman who leads tours through the disused tunnels. A labyrinth from which not everyone will find their way out unscathed.

Photo: Aleksandra Pawloff