Animal Farm

The audience will see the premiere of an opera based on Orwell’s classic of the dystopia of a failed liberation struggle. The animals on a squalid farm revolt against their tyrannical owners, but soon come under the rule of a new leader from their own ranks.

About the direction
Director Damiano Michieletto has long wished to bring Animal Farm to the opera stage. »The story is simple, a sort of fairy tale which, if you look at it more closely, deals with important issues such as power, oppression and propaganda in a nuanced way. The story is horrible but has comic elements as well. And it allows you to have not only a lot of solo roles but also a chorus«, Michieletto notes. He found the ideal partner in Alexander Raskatov. The composer was born to a Jewish Russian family in Moscow on the day of Stalin’s burial in 1953, not far from Red Square, and has won acclaim with his setting of another literary masterpiece critical of the Soviet Union – A Dog’s Heart, based on Bulgakov’s novella, and also premiered at Dutch National Opera, followed by performances in London, Milan and Lyon.

Director Michielletto set the story in an ab- attoir, rather than a farmyard. »The characters are waiting to be slaughtered here. They’re locked in cages, dreaming of freedom. To be an animal here means being a slave, meat, an object in the hands of humans.« Michieletto’s world premiere production was created as a Co-production of several commissioning houses. It had its premiere in Amsterdam on March 4, 2023; the Viennese premiere follows on February 28, 2024.
 
About the music
Raskatov worked closely with experienced librettist and dramaturge Ian Burton. It was important to him to connect Orwell’s external view of the Soviet empire with internal views, by incorporating original quotes by Stalin, Trotsky and secret service chief Beria, along with Beria’s acts of sexual violence. Raskatov shortened and condensed the text and pushed for the narrative to proceed in graphic situations, as far as possible. For his setting he developed a »scalpel style«, as he calls it, which contures events sharply and in high contrast. Raskatov also uses musical references to the history of his homeland. The score has no fewer than 21 solo roles, covering the full spectrum of human vocal ranges, where each one has a characteristic individual profile.
 
Background
»All animals are equal, but some are more equal than others.« The first two translations appeared in Ukrainian and Polish in 1947, the year of the novel’s publication, a parable of the perversion of the Russian Revolution under Stalin’s dictatorship.
Naturally, they had to appear in western Europe. But for some time, it was by no means certain that you would find the English original in western bookshops, which met the manuscript with passive resistance. As Orwell noted in the foreword to the Ukrainian edition, his satire was not primarily aimed at the Soviet Union, which he knew only from periodicals and books, but at western illusions about the socialist wonderland in the east. These illusions implied the need to actively suppress and deny the totalitarian excesses of the regime, from the show trials and deportations through the genocides and the Terror Famine to the gulags.
The fact that a »left« author such as Orwell was writing against this uncritical admiration was met with silence and disinterest by circles regarding themselves as progressive. While at the time it was geopolitical and partypolitical interests (the Soviet Union as an ally in the struggle against Nazi Germany or capitalism) that buttressed the conspiracy of silence in western societies, it has mostrecently be eneconomic interests. The topical nature of Orwell’s dystopia is clear in view of the flagrant re-Stalinization of Russian society since the »oughts«. In the »post-factual« age of populism, the basic question of the book remains pressingly acute in the West. How can popular leaders use the stirring rhetoric of freedom and security while enforcing ruthless power and selfinterest?
 
Attendance at the performance is only recommended from the age of 14!


ATTENTION: The actual beginning time for performances at the Vienna State Opera without time specification have been not yet announced, actual beginning time of those performances will be published by the Vienna State Opera and on our web site at latest 1 month in advance. The user is due to provide himself with the accurate beginning time for those performances.

At every seat and standing room space in the auditorium, you can follow the performance reading German or English subtitles. Please switch on the monitor by pressing the pushbutton and select your language.

program

Animal Farm
Musik: Alexander Raskatov
Text: Ian Burton & Alexander Raskatov nach George Orwell
→ Oper in drei Akten, neun Szenen & einem Epilog

Place

Vienna State Opera – World-Renowned Stage for Opera and Ballet in the Heart of Vienna

The Vienna State Opera is one of the world's leading opera houses and a cultural landmark of Austria. Located prominently in the heart of Vienna, along the famous Ringstrasse, it offers outstanding opera productions featuring international stars and a renowned ballet ensemble.

Since its grand opening in 1869, the Vienna State Opera has been synonymous with musical excellence, artistic perfection, and an extensive repertoire ranging from operatic classics to contemporary works. Each season, it stages more than 300 performances, including world-famous operas such as Mozart’s "The Magic Flute", Verdi’s "La Traviata", and Puccini’s "Tosca".

Alongside its acclaimed opera productions, the Vienna State Opera is also home to the celebrated Vienna State Ballet, renowned for both classical and contemporary dance performances. The annual Vienna Opera Ball is a prestigious social event with international prominence.

Getting There by Public Transport

Subway:

• Lines U1, U2, U4 – Karlsplatz station, direct access

Tram:

• Lines 1, 2, D, 62, 71 – Oper/Karlsplatz stop

Bus:

• Line 59A – Oper stop

Its central location on Vienna’s Ringstrasse ensures convenient and easy access.

Vienna State Opera – A Symbol of Viennese Culture and Musical Excellence

As one of the world's premier opera houses, the Vienna State Opera is an essential destination for opera enthusiasts, music lovers, and visitors seeking to experience the cultural heart of Vienna.