(Photo: © OMC Marco Borrelli) Over the past three years, the Opéra de Monte-Carlo has presented a complete cycle of the Mozart–Da Ponte operas in semi-staged performances by the Wiener Staatsoper. The series began in 2023 with “Le Nozze di Figaro,” continued in 2024 with “Don Giovanni” and concluded on February 9, 2026, with “Così fan tutte.” When “Semi-Staged” Means {…}
On Dec. 31, 2025, ORF III will broadcast the Wiener Staatsoper’s production J. Strauss’ “Die Fledermaus.” The production by Otto Schenk will star Jonas Kaufmann as Eisenstein in his first stage performances of the role alongside Diana Damrau as Rosalinde. They will be joined by Jochen Schmeckenbecher as Frank, Daria Sushkova as Prinz Orlofsky, Jörg Schneider as Alfred, Adrian Eröd {…}
(Photo: Ashley Taylor) Richard Strauss’s one-act opera “Elektra” (1909), with a searing libretto by Hugo von Hofmannsthal, stands as a monumental achievement in 20th-century music drama. A radical adaptation of Sophocles’ tragedy, it plunges the listener into the tormented psyche of Elektra, obsessed with avenging her father Agamemnon’s murder by her mother, Klytämnestra, with the help of her lover Aegisth. {…}
(Photo: © Wiener Staatsoper / Michael Pöhn) Before I get to the performance in question for this review, “Dialogues des Carmelites,” I have a few words about the setting. Though reasonably well-travelled, somehow I never went to Vienna. I did attend Salzburg for the festival. And Munich as well, for a shattering Janacek’s “From the House of the Dead”. Paris, {…}
The Wiener Staatsoper has announced a cast change for its production of “Salome.” The company said that Lidia Fridman will replace Elena Stikhina in the title role. Fridman took to social media and said, “With immense joy and excitement, I can finally announce my return to the Wiener Staatsoper, with a role I deeply adore and carry close to my {…}
(Credit: © Katharina Schiffl) The Wiener Staatsoper marked the 70th anniversary of the reopening of the opera with a ceremony in the Schwindfoyer of the opera house on the Ring on November 5, 2025. The ceremony saw the company unveil a memorial plaque in the arcade driveway, to the right of the main entrance, commemorating the victims of the Nazi {…}
(Credit: ©Gemma Escribano) The Wiener Staatsoper has announced cast changes for its productions of “Luisa Miller” and “Falstaff.” The company said that Marko Mimica will sing the role of Wurm, replacing Andrea Mastroni. It added that Attila Mokus will sing the role of Ford in “Falstaff,” replacing the originally announced Davide Luciano. Mimica, who performs regularly throughout Europe at the Deutsche Oper {…}
The Wiener Staatsoper has announced a cast change for its production of “Iolanta.” The company said that Sonya Yoncheva will no longer perform the title role on Sept. 13 and 16. As a result, Elena Stikhina will replace her. The change comes after Yoncheva announced on social media that she was experiencing physical fatigue following a full summer schedule. She {…}
Sonya Yoncheva has canceled her performance of “Iolanta” at the Wiener Staatsoper on Sept. 10, 2025. The soprano took to social media and said, “Dear All, some of you have noticed that I couldn’t take part at the Gala in Vienna last Sunday. The night before while performing ‘Iolanta’ at the Wiener Staatsoper, I felt an incredible physical fatigue, which {…}
The Wiener Staatsoper has announced a cast change for its production of “Luisa Miller.” The company noted that Nadine Sierra will sing the title role, replacing the originally announced Federica Lombardi. Sierra first performed the title role in concert at the Teatro San Carlo. This season, she is set to open a new production of “La Sonnambula” at the Metropolitan {…}
The Wiener Staatsoper has announced the Film Festival on Vienna’s Rathausplatz. The company will present operas on 10 Sunday evenings at the Haus am Ring. Here is a look at the program: The festival opens with Puccini’s “La bohème” from 2022 featuring Vittorio Grigolo, Anna Netrebko, Günther Groissböck, and Nina Minasyan. Date: June 29, 2025 Donizetti’s “L’elisir d’amore” from 2022 features {…}