Bucharest Tour Guide

The Vienna State Opera (Wiener Staatsoper)

The Vienna State Opera was called the Vienna Court Opera (Wiener Hofoper) until the end of the monarchy when its name was changed to the Vienna State Opera.

The Vienna Court Opera
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1869

The Vienna Court Opera House was the first major building to be built on the Ringstrasse and the preparations for the building were begun in 1861. The foundation stone was laid on the 20th May 1863, and the building was completed by 1869.

Unfortunately, the architects, August Sicard von Sicardsburg and Eduard van der Nüll’s, design failed to match the beautiful architecture of the Heinrichhof which stood on the opposite side of the Ringstrasse. (The Heinrichhof was destroyed during the last weeks of the Second World War)

Public opinion and open criticism led to the start of a campaign against the two architects. Because the Ringstrasse had been raised in front of the opera house by about one metre it made the building look as though it had sunk beneath street level. This led to Opera House being described as a "sunken chest" (versunkene Kiste) and "The Königgrätz of Architecture” (Königgrätz der Baukunst). (At the same time Austria was at war with Prussia, which made a verbal comparison with the military disaster that had taken place in Königsgrätz (Battle of Sadová), a very harmful jest.)

Eduard van der Nüll was deeply upset by the criticism and, although his wife was in her eighth month of pregnancy, he committed su***de on the 4th April 1868.

His colleague, August Sicard von Sicardsburg died shortly afterwards and so neither of the architects saw the completion of the building.

Emperor Franz Joseph was shocked by the su***de of Eduard van der Nüll and thereafter he did not express an open opinion and was very guarded about any remarks he made.
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The Premiere

Emperor Franz Joseph and Empress Elisabeth (Sisi) attended the opening ceremony of the Vienna Court Opera House where Mozart’s opera “Don Giovanni” was performed on the 25th May 1869.
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1918

After 1918, during the years of the First and Second Republic of Austria, the performances continued as usual under its new name Vienna State Opera.
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The Vienna Opera Ball

The Vienna Opera Ball (Wiener Opernball) is an annual event which takes place in the Vienna State Opera House during the last days of Fasching, (Shrovetide is the English equivalent of "Fasching" and marks the beginning of Lent.)

The Auditorium of the Vienna State Opera House is transformed into a large ballroom. Only one day before the ball takes place hundreds of seats are removed, and a temporary floor is built bringing everything to the same level as the stage.
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1935

The Vienna Opera Ball was first held in 1935 and continued to take place until the war. After the war the ball was revived and has been held annually ever since. (In 1991, the ball was cancelled due to the Persian Gulf War.)
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1944

The last performance (Wagners “Götterdämmerung”) took place on the 30th June 1944 in the midst of the Second World.
In September 1944, all of the theatres within the German Third Reich were closed.
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1945

In March 1945, during the very last few weeks of the war, the opera house was hit by incendiary bombs causing a fire that gutted most of the building. Only the front section of the magnificent historical building, together with many of the original frescoes, the vestibule, main staircase and tea room were undamaged because, as a war precaution, this section had been walled off and separated from the rest of the building. Unfortunately, the auditorium and stage were destroyed together with a great majority of the original architecture.
The ensemble of the State Opera continued to perform at the “Theater an der Wien” and the “Vienna Volksoper”.
After the war discussions were held to decide if the badly damaged building should be restored to its original state or be demolished and rebuilt. Fortunately the decision was made to restore the opera house to its former glory on the same site. The Austrian government wanted to have the State Opera House finished by 1949, but as time passed everyone involved soon realised that this could not be achieved. Eventually in November 1955 the State Opera House was reopened with a performance of Beethoven’s “Fidelio”, conducted by Karl Böhm.

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