music
German-speaking operas delighted with the return of the audience
The director of the Leipzig Opera, Tobias Wolff, is looking forward to more audiences in the music theaters. photo
© Sebastian Willnow/dpa
In addition to major issues for the future and concerns about rising prices, one thing above all prevails in Germany’s opera houses: joy. In all houses, the audience is finally returning after two years of the pandemic.
Refurbishment, sustainability, digitization and the energy crisis: German-language opera houses face a multitude of tasks. “An exchange is incredibly important,” said the director of the Leipzig Opera, Tobias Wolff, on Saturday in an interview with the German Press Agency. Representatives of the houses meet twice a year for this exchange as part of the German-speaking Opera Conference (Dok), until Saturday they were guests in Leipzig.
In addition to concerns about high energy costs, the focus was on joy: After two years of the corona pandemic, the country’s theaters are filling up again.
Many houses played significantly more again, only a few days ago the premiere was celebrated in the Leipzig Opera. “The last two years have been a really tough time due to the corona pandemic, which is still ongoing,” said the director of the Komische Oper in Berlin and director of documentation, Susanne Moser. Above all, the pandemic has shown one thing from the perspective of the opera houses: opera is a communal experience that cannot be replaced by digital.
Climate neutrality and sustainability
In the future, digitization should therefore play a greater role, especially in the areas of marketing and administration. Individual ideas should also be considered not only from the point of view of climate neutrality, but also with a view to other areas of sustainability, such as alternative mobility.
In a regional comparison, the exchange in the past few days has also shown that houses in the south of the country are better equipped financially. “Due to the different sizes, the houses then also deal with completely different topics,” said Wolff. Many houses, including those in other parts of the country, were also undergoing major renovations.
The conference is an association of a total of 13 opera houses in German-speaking countries as well as stages in London, Milan and Paris. Representatives of the houses meet twice a year to exchange views on current topics and challenges. The next Doc is scheduled to take place in Berlin from May 4th to 6th.