With Netrebko and Co.

State Opera Director: “This is not a festival”

State Opera Director Bogdan Roščić with star soprano Anna Netrebko.(Bild: Starpix / A. Tuma)

At the Vienna State Opera's season presentation for the coming season, director Bogdan Roščić welcomed many stars and spoke to the "Krone" about the balancing act between state theater and show business...

Whether Anna Netrebko, Federica Lombardi, Sonya Yoncheva and Xabier Anduaga on the singing side or Hyo-Jung Kang and Marcos Menha on the dancing side - at the Vienna State Opera's season presentation, it quickly became clear that the coming season at the First House on the Ring will be one highlight after another. Of course, nothing is left to chance and long-term planning is required.

Returning to the First House on the Ring next season: Anna Netrebko.(Bild: Starpix / A. Tuma)

"This is not a festival! It's a repertoire house that performs around 300 evenings a year. Putting on such a balanced season is not for the faint-hearted," explains State Opera Director Bogdan Roščić in the "Krone" talk. The most incredible singers are guests throughout the season, and that's what the State Opera has to offer, because "it may be a state theater, but it's also part of show business."

Planning often begins four or five years before the season, says Roščić, otherwise you can't get the artists you want. "With the singers, you have to guess what they will sound like in four, five, six, seven, sometimes eight years' time." But one thing is certain: "There is never a shortage of great talent, you just have to find it!"