A classy night out in a classy city with some classy people

            I know this is a class on Theatre in London, but I’m going to venture out here and write about a performance I saw in Vienna, Austria. (Bold move, I know). Anyway, my three travelling comrades and I decided that it would be a good idea to be classy and cultural while in the city that was home to the two most famous composers in history, Beethoven and Mozart. While wandering around one of the city’s main squares a man in a fancy red coat approached us and told us of all the wonders and joys of this concert he was promoting. Normally I ignore people like this- I’m always skeptical of people trying to sell me stuff, especially people in fancy red jackets- but I decided to hear him out and he managed to convince me and my friends that going to the concert was the best way to spend our night in Vienna. He was very good at his job, obviously. Plus he promised us a student discount, and I’m a sucker for a discount.

A few hours later the four of us showed up to an elaborate looking building with shining lights and an extravagant entry way. We walked in, excited to discover what was in store, but were quickly ushered out of the hall and told that our concert was taking place across the street. Bummer. We walked to the boring looking brick building that was not nearly as epic looking as the building we thought the concert was going to be in was, but it was nice nonetheless. After being forced to check my coat (I am entirely willing to hold my coat and save myself a euro, thank you) we walked up the steps to the entrance of the hall. Standing in line I took note of the other people in line and the décor of the venue, and both were very classy. Finally we were ushered into the hall and sat in the last row, which was disappointing but something that I can easily overcome thanks to my somewhat freakish height and thus my ability to see over other people’s heads. Besides, this was a concert so my ears were more important than my eyes anyway so I didn’t let it bother me. The room was an old hall that was reminiscent of the gothic style, with vaulted ceilings, stain glass windows and columns. Finally the concert started.

    I realized it was really hard to pay attention at classical music concerts. The music caused my mind to wander and I was quickly struggling to focus on the present. I recognized more of the music than I expected, but I wasn’t too surprised by this considering that they were playing the best of Mozart and Beethoven. The music was often accompanied by an opera performance and by ballet, both of which were really interesting to see live. The audience seemed to be heavily engrossed in the performance as well, minus the small child down the row from me who fell out of his chair and hit his head upon falling asleep from boredom. I felt like I was getting a truly local experience due to the small size of the venue and the general lack of tourists in the audience. It was really interesting and rewarding to hear music performed in the city it was composed. We had walked by Mozart’s home earlier in the day, and here we were listening to his greatest hits live.

            So, if anyone ever finds themselves in Vienna be sure to check out a concert. Maybe you will be lucky enough to find one similar to the one I saw and there will be music, opera and ballet- just look for the fancy man in a red jacket and tell him to hook it up. Overall, the concert was a rewarding experience that I will remember as one of the highlights of my trip.


Andrew Avallone
aavallon@ucsc.edu