© Lotte de Beer / Volksoper Wien
Lotte de Beer, artistic director of the Vienna Volksoper since 2022, has helped change the image of Vienna's "popular and folk" opera house by "trying new things". The public has responded. Her mandate has been extended until 2032.
The programming of an opera house takes place over a long period of time: the choice of productions and the engagement of directors and artists are orchestrated years in advance, implying that the artistic directors of an opera house have a long-term vision of their activities. Lotte de Beer has been artistic director of the Wiener Volksoper since 2022 and her mandate runs until the end of the 2027/28 season, but she has already been reappointed until at least 2032.
This is according to Andrea Mayer, Austrian State Secretary for Art and Culture, who praises the artistic director's ability to renew the image of the Volksoper, which is traditionally dedicated to popular and folk operas. For several years now, and particularly under Lotte de Beer's impetus, the Vienna Opera has been establishing itself more and more as an innovative house - we remember that when she took up her post, Lotte de Beer told us in an interview that she wanted to "try new things", to offer "popular opera in the best sense of the word, while taking art very seriously".
And while the ‘director’ Lotte de Beer is not always unanimously acclaimed, the ‘artistic director’ has clearly already achieved her ambition: according to Christian Kircher, head of the Bundestheater - the holding company that oversees Austria's state theatres - the Volksoper is “on the verge of closing the most successful season in the company's history” in terms of audience figures, while continuing to rejuvenate its audience - 24% of the Volksoper's visitors are under 30.
“Continuing to build bridges”
In a press release, Lotte de Beer stated that she wanted to continue her mission: “The Volksoper Wien is a unique place in the international theater landscape. I consider it a privilege to build bridges between artistic heritage and renewal, between our diverse audiences with their different views and ways of thinking and between nostalgia and utopia at this wonderful venue. At the Volksoper Wien - this most versatile of all theaters - we can laugh, cry, dream, reflect and search for what unites us, evening after evening.” She continues: “Many of my goals have already been achieved, but some changes take time and trust. And so it is a pleasure for me to be able to lead the Volksoper for another five years until 2032.”
The Volksoper's forthcoming season clearly reflects these ambitions: Lotte de Beer's programme includes Carmen and The Marriage of Figaro, as well as the world premiere of Alma, a new opera by composer Ella Milch-Sheriff about the Viennese figure Alma Mahler-Werfel, Ralph Benatzky's operetta L'Auberge du Cheval-Blanc in a production that satirises overtourism, and musicals such as Stephen Sondheim's Follies and My Fair Lady.
Some 13 candidates applied to succeed Lotte de Beer, eight men, four women and one male/female double entry, five from Austria and the rest from abroad. The recommendation to extend Lotte de Beer's mandate was unanimous.
free translation of our article first published in French
the 03 of July, 2024 | Print
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