Vienna in turmoil as Opera advertises for new chief

Vienna in turmoil as Opera advertises for new chief

News

norman lebrecht

April 17, 2022

The job of Bogdan Roscic as director of the Vienna State Opera has been readvertised from 2025 with women especially being asked to apply.

Roscic is expected to apply again for his own job and some supporters in Austrian media have been pumping up his supposed achievements. But the advertisement amounts to an open tender and there is no shortage of qualified women who could be preferred.

Meanwhile, Austrian television cancelled without explanation its long-scheduled relay of the Staatsoper’s new Tristan.

UPDATE: A spokesperson said: ‘This decision was made after the performance by the management, the conductor and other involved persons. Two members of the vocal ensemble had generously agreed to sing the performance despite not being completely healthy. However, it was impossible under the circumstances to produce a recording which continuously meets the Vienna State Opera’s and Ö1’s expectation towards such a more permanent document.’

Comments

  • Matthias says:

    No turmoil, just business as usual and a bad production.

    • Petros Linardos says:

      Indeed, we have to take those reports with a grain of salt. Rosic has been routinely bashed here, before he even took office in Vienna.

  • William Evans says:

    I bet the naked chorus members, alt least, were delighted to read that their embarrassment had been somewhat minimised. Less welcome will have been the news of the likely coincidental lowering of their re-broadcast fees.

  • Richard says:

    Nice to see some accountability (for a change) !!!

    Munich’s is shit too.

    Both are costly €€€s. Names are Bieito and Warlikowski.

    Hired by Bachler (gone) and Roščić (going).

    • JS says:

      You may or may not like what Warlikowski does, but he respects the singers, he really works with them – I have yet to see a singer complain about him. From the aesthetic point of view his productions look better, too.

    • Francisco José Villalba says:

      You are right
      All shit to the glory of two discosting and awfull regosseurs

  • Marcello says:

    It was not television, but (only) radio. Instead a recording of the T&I opening night from 1967 with Böhm, Nilsson, Thomas (!) was broadcast. A live stream is still planned for April 27.

  • Franz says:

    nothing special about either of this news.

    First of all, the director of the Vienna State Opera is a pulic position for which an open tender has to conducted. This was actually always the case also when the contracts of Holender or Meyer were prolonged for a second or even third time. The same is actually also the case in Salzburg, where Markus Hinterhäuser has to send in an application every time his contract has to be extended. No big fuss, but simply the usual procedure. The only difference may be that Roscic was initially chosen by a social democratic secretary. Currently, however, the responsible secretary comes from the Green party. Turmoil? no

    Secondly, not a TV relay was called off, but rather only a radio relay (Ö1 is a radio station). The production will be streamed in about two weeks time over the website of the State Opera.

  • Player says:

    They could not be sure to edit out the booing.

  • M McAlpine says:

    Even the audio was too painful apparently!

  • Ursulistin says:

    Good news

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