Outrage as ex-Casino boss joins Vienna Opera

Outrage as ex-Casino boss joins Vienna Opera

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norman lebrecht

December 22, 2019

Petra Bohuslav has been named commercial director of the Vienna State Opera, alongside artistic director Bogdan Roscic.

Bohuslav, 54, is a regional politician who was formerly a manager at Casinos Austria and managing director of the Carnuntum archology park.

The former long-serving head of the Vienna State Opera, Ion Holender, has erupted in outrage, saying Bohuslav ‘had nothing to do with theatre, or with opera.’ He accused the culture minister of sneaking in her appointment to avoid public discussion in the media lull before Christmas.

 

Comments

  • Mustafa Kandan says:

    Lets hope it will all work out. The fact Roscic appointed a music director, unlike Dominique Meyer, augurs well.

  • Alexander says:

    freaky awesome …
    which opera will be favourite from now ? the only name somehow connected with cards I remember – “The queen of spades” 😉

  • Bloom says:

    I think the close affinities between gambling and opera management have been ignored too long. Now it s the time to set things right.

    • Larry W says:

      Wouldn’t bet on it.

    • Calvin says:

      You jest, but in fact it is true. La Scala had a casino attached to it, as did virtually all opera houses in Italy. This made the the opera houses sufficiently profitable to commission new operas. The houses were privately owned and the casino operations permitted the likely of Domenico Barbaja (1778-1841) to be the well known impresario he became. Rossini’s contract with Naples’s San Carlo opera house, and shows that he got 200 ducats a month as musical director there and 1,000 ducats as his share of the gambling proceeds.

  • Sue Sonata Form says:

    If my memory serves me, Casinos Austria sponsored (or did in 2015) Oper Live am Platz in Vienna.

  • fflambeau says:

    A bean counter is a bean counter.

  • Nik says:

    Did Alex Beard have any opera or theatre experience prior to his appointment?

  • Brian viner says:

    Friends in high places

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