We will be in Vienna this September. We have a choice of 2 operas to see at the Staatsopera. Don Carlo, or Arabella. Any opinions on the two? We have never been to an opera before. I've been reading up a bit on the two, but would love some opinions.

I've been looking at the Staatsopera's website to purchase the tickets. I can be put on a list for standby tickets. I imagine this is because the tickets are not for sale at this point. Should I do standby tickets, or is it too risky to wait for them to go on sale?

I appreciate any advice or opinions.
-Jenn

I´d go for Don Carlo, mostly for the male singers. I have heard all of them separately, and together they must be really good. It is a bit long, but it has some classic Verdi choirs and some beautiful arias.

bye, Cova

The state opera house is an attraction in its own right and there should be tours available. As to the operas, neither is in the Top 10 of popularity. Arabella is set in Vienna, which may seem appropriate. It is also much younger, a comedy dating to the operetta era of the 1930s.
Forgive me if this sounds like I am talking down, but for your first experience you might want to consider the language situation. Most opera houses now provide subtitle translations -- surtitles, to be more precise, projected above the stage. Don Carlos exists in both French and Italian versions while Arabella is obviously German. Whichever, the surtitles are unlikely to be in English. I tried to find any note on the official website as to surtitles but was unsuccessful. The emotions are carried by the music so if you have a rough idea of the plot you will be fine, but it helps to read up ahead, as you have been doing.
For newbies, the Metropolitan Opera's broadcast of performances in movie theatres has been a great advantage. Some of the past season's shows are being rebroadcast and they would make a great introduction to both the spirit of the art form and the intricacies of backstage production. You can check the Met website for your area http://www.metoperafamily.org/metope...d-encores.aspx

As I recall, the Staatsoper uses a titling system similar to the Met and the Liceu in Barcelona: the titles are "projected" on the seat back directly in front of the viewer as opposed to over the proscenium. This whole situation has been the subject of controversy by some folks but if you read up on the synopsis of whichever work you decide to see (easily done on Google) I think you'll find it will help a great deal as has been suggested above.

There actually may be titles projected in several different languages simultaneously as they are in the Liceu which projects in English, Catalan, and Spanish.

Dukey is correct.

For most of the seats you will have your own individual language screen in front of you.

In the boxes, except for the first two seats, you will have language boxes on the side of the wall. These language boxes are also individualized, so that you do not need to share.

You can select English as your preferred language. There's German, of course, and I believe there's also French.

If you are going to get a box seat on the side, do NOT get the last row, you will not be able to see much, if anything at all, from back there. The way these opera houses were designed, those seats were for listening and not so much for viewing. You should be able to get tickets two months ahead of the performance date.

As for which opera, hard to say. Certainly <i>Don Carlos</i> is much easier on the ears than <i>Arabella</i> (Strauss has a lot of "dissonance"). The cast in DC is a very good one, whereas, with Arabella, if you can get Renee Fleming in the performance, it might be worth it. Also DC is a tragedy and A is a comedy - your preference.

Tours of the opera house are given in the afternoon in several languages. The schedule is posted on the left side of the opera house (if you are facing the opera house).

Enjoy!

The Don Carlo cast is FAR better than the one for Arabella. Definitely Don Carlo.

Thanks to all for the great advice! I think we will go with Don Carlo. I'm not worried about the language issues, but will use the screens when needed. I will read up on the synopsis before we go. Even if I don't catch every detail, hearing beautiful music will be enough for me. Very excited to see my first opera in this beautiful location!

MrsJenn,

We just returned from Vienna and Don Carlos was playing. We are opera lovers, and opted not to go because of the length...this opera is 5 hours long. We did, however, watch it on the giant simulcast screen right outside the opera house (lots of fun, lots of people, good seating). Well, what we did was watch for a while, go to dinner, and then come back and watch some more!

I don't know what cast will be singing the night you are intending to go, but if it's the one we saw, then you are in for a treat. Don Carlos was sung by the young tenor Younghoon Lee who is a rising superstar. We were mesmerized by his singing.

That being said, I would caution this as a first opera....for a number of reasons (some already cited).

1) It's long. Really long.

2) The staging of this production is a bit stark. No sets per se. Everyone in black. Not much eye-candy to go along with the ear-candy.

3) It's not an opera where you will recognize any of the music. Although that's not required, it's nice to have some recognition of a thread of music that you've heard before (i.e., Nessun Dorma from Turandot).

One option you may want to consider is to take a tour of the Staatsoper, see part of Don Carlos on the giant screen, and then see an opera at the Volksoper. The Volksoper is also a wonderful venue, and it usually has more options.

I don't know exactly what dates you'll be there in September, but I see that both Carmen and La Traviata have performances then. Both are excellent options for a first (or any!) opera viewing! We saw La Traviata there a few weeks ago.

Hope that helps!

LisaG

Well, I should have checked the schedule of the Staatsoper before I posted. I see that the Don Carlo(s) being performed in September is the Italian version: different production, different performers.

Many of my comments are still applicable though. Just not those about the staging and the tenor.

LisaG

LisaG got my curiosity up so I went into the Staatsoper and the Volksper websites.

The September cast for Don Carlo at the Staatsoper are:

René Pape | <i>Philipp II</i>
Roberto Alagna | <i>Don Carlo</i>
Simon Keenlyside | <i>Rodrigo</i>
Krassimira Stoyanova | <i>Elisabeth von Valois</i>
Luciana D`Intino | <i>Prinzessin Eboli</i>

Holy Cow! Talk about a stellar cast!


As for the Volksoper, if you are going to go there for opera, go for what it is good at: light opera, operetta.

Yes, <i>Carmen</i> has familiar "tunes", but IMHO, you're better off seeing either <i>Die Fledermaus</i> by Johann Strauss or <i>Die Lustige Witwe [The Merry Widow]</i> by Franz Lehar. Bot these operettas will be showing at the Volksoper in September and both have rousing and fun music. There are English synopsis surtitles (not a literal translation), so sometimes you'l miss the jokes and humor in German, but it's not that great a loss.