The Winner Takes It All
Feature |
In addition to children's, youth and family operas and participatory projects, NEST, the new venue of the Vienna State Opera on Karlsplatz, also offers selected events for a wide audience that approach the genre of musical theater from an unusual angle.
For example, the opera quiz created and moderated by baritone Georg Nigl, which took place for the first time at the beginning of March.
In this format, three pairs of candidates compete against each other in three rounds to guess or answer as many questions as possible from different thematic blocks adapted to the repertoire. Multiple choice and yes/no questions are varied.
Each pair of candidates is made up of an artist from the State Opera and a member of the audience who has registered for the quiz in advance. Everyone can therefore consult with each other before answering a question - and with a bit of luck win an attractive prize at the end. The fact that various jokers are also used is of course a matter of course for an amusing quiz event. After all, it should be amusing, relaxed and entertaining. At least not musicologically dry or even freakishly nerdy. And so the audience in the sold-out hall had a lot of fun on this first evening, which was dedicated to Mozart and his Magic Flute.
As did the candidates, who clearly enjoyed their 90 minutes on stage. Not least Stefan Janke, the winner of this first round. Impressed by his knowledge and aplomb, we asked him for an interview in the canteen of the Vienna State Opera a few days later.
As this is a brand new series of events, we would of course be interested to know how you found out about this quiz and why you signed up as a candidate?
It was actually pure coincidence. I've been following the Vienna State Opera on Instagram for a while now and found out about this event through an application. As I've always wanted to take part in a quiz and have a certain affinity with the world of music, I thought it might be fun to try my luck here. What could possibly happen? And so, at the risk of making a fool of myself, I registered my interest and was promptly accepted.
So you have a closer connection to the Vienna State Opera when you follow it on Instagram?
In fact, my parents took me to performances at the State Opera from the age of five. Probably a little too early, because I dived through my very first performance, Rossini's Cenerentola, more asleep than awake. Even the usual starter pieces that followed, such as Mozart's Magic Flute or Beethoven's Fidelio, didn't turn me into an ardent opera enthusiast. Especially not Weber's Freischütz, whose Wolf's Glen scene gave me a fear of thunderstorms that lasted for several years. However, I cured this on my own as a 13-year-old by consciously attending another Freischütz performance. And after that, things went pretty quickly - because by the age of 14 or 15 at the latest, I could be found in the standing room at least three times a week. Or queuing around the opera house for nights on end to get a standing room ticket for a performance under Herbert von Karajan or Carlos Kleiber. It made sense for me to do my A-levels in music. But that wasn't enough for me, so I started singing in the Vienna Jeunesse Choir soon after leaving grammar school and was able to take part in wonderful concerts with greats like Leonard Bernstein - even at the Vienna State Opera for the Hiroshima Peace Concert in 1985.
Later, as a member of the choir's board, I was able to help with the organization, which I really enjoyed. It's no wonder that my professional dream was soon to become a cultural manager. To get closer to this goal, I even studied at the Institute for Cultural Management. However, I wanted to finance this myself and therefore started working in a bank at the same time... that's how I ended up in the financial sector permanently. But I have retained my love of music, especially musical theater, to this day.
This first quiz evening was all about Mozart and the Magic Flute. Would you have dared to take part with a different composer or was the subject one of the reasons for taking a chance?
When I signed up, I didn't even know that it would be about Mozart. I also didn't have any time to read up or prepare. As a student, however, I often went to the municipal library, which was still located in Skodagasse at the time, with a piano reduction under my arm and borrowed records of various operas, which I then listened to and read along with. Out of pure joy. Obviously a lot of things stuck with me. And I have to admit that I also studied singing briefly and even performed a duet from Verdi's Attila - my favorite opera - in public with a colleague in a retirement home. Alongside Mozart, Italian operas are still my fundamental strength. However, if you had taken a quiz on Richard Strauss, I might not have won. I only know his Rosenkavalier and Arabella well.
So what did you think of the quiz itself - you certainly don't seem to suffer from stage fright?
Well... I had expected a maximum of 40, 50 people in the audience. When I entered the building and saw how many were already standing in the entrance area alone, my heart sank a little. On the other hand, I'm used to performing in front of an audience thanks to my Jeunesse choir past and various presentation and moderation activities in my job. But everyone was probably a bit nervous at the beginning - perhaps even Georg Nigl, even if you couldn't tell. I myself messed up the first question - I thought the whole thing was over. However, when we - my quiz partner and I - took the lead after a few minutes, I was actually able to relax and enjoy the rest of the evening. Even a little bit of tactics, that's part of it - after all, you don't know everything.(laughs) In any case, the event was characterized by a friendly and charming naturalness, where everyone could feel that it was about having fun and not about winning. In other words, I would be delighted to take part again.
The next date of the opera quiz with Georg Nigl is all about Richard Wagner and Tannhäuser.
If you would also like to be a candidate on stage, please contact our dramaturgy department by e-mail: dramaturgie@wiener-staatsoper.at