In love with the Opera Ball
Interview |
PR and marketing expert Susanne Athanasiadis has been Head of Marketing and Communications at the Vienna State Opera since 2020 - after holding positions at Ö3, Kurier, ORF and twelve years of self-employment. Since 2023, she has also enthusiastically managed the organization of the Opera Ball, which this time takes place on 12 February and is broadcast all over the world. A few weeks before the big event, during the final spurt so to speak, Susanne Athanasiadis cultivates the art of bilocation: she seems to be in all parts of the opera house at the same time in order to check that everything is in order. That's why, despite her enormous workload, she found time for this interview.
What does the Opera Ball mean to you?
I like to say it's my "favorite hobby", because my actual job at the opera is to manage the Marketing & Communications department and the Guided Tours.
And where do you find the time for this hobby? You already have enough to do with your actual job.
The honest answer is: I don't know. It's all a question of self-organization and, above all, functioning teamwork. I have a super team at my side!
And where do you get the energy from?
Both the opera and the Opera Ball make people happy. Sharing responsibility here makes you happy and releases tremendous energy.
"Both the opera and the Opera Ball make people happy. Sharing responsibility here makes you happy and releases tremendous energy."
Did you go to an opera ball before your time at the State Opera?
Twice, but that was a long time ago.
Do you occasionally retreat to your office during the ball to shake out your legs?
I only go to the office when I change my dancing shoes for platform sneakers.
Can you even watch the TV reports about the Opera Ball the next day?
I have to do that in order to be able to give feedback - even at the risk of seeing myself in the picture.
Does your husband also attend the Opera Ball?
The first year I had to persuade him, but then he tasted blood, and since then he has been very happy to come along voluntarily. Since I gave him a tailcoat for Christmas two years ago, he is also well equipped.
How do you feel when the debutante couples enter the dance floor at the very beginning?
My heart rate is about 200, but apart from that I'm touched, proud, happy - a great mixture of emotions!
The ball is over at five o'clock in the morning. Can you even sleep after that?
The adrenaline level is in the way. I also have to go to the opera again soon, as the two children's Magic Flute performances are waiting.
Do you hang up the opera ball posters at home?
Yes, two are already hanging. This year's one will also go on the wall.
What will you always remember about the Opera Ball?
My first live interview on television. Knowing that at least a million people are watching live is a strange feeling that you only gradually get used to. At the time, I was almost faint with excitement. But everything went well.
Let's move on to more detailed questions: a major event like the Opera Ball, where so much has to work together precisely, requires very precise planning and organization. You have been in charge since 2023. What exactly are your responsibilities?
When it came to reorganizing the Opera Ball, we all agreed that it was an event of the State Opera in which the entire house works together intensively. So the house - represented by the director - should also act as host and not a single, external so-called opera ball lady. In his role as director, Bogdan Roščić is therefore the only person to greet the Federal President and the audience on television. As on every other evening, he relies on a team to take care of the event.
In the case of the Opera Ball, there are three people: Steirereck boss Birgit Reitbauer, Austria's top restaurateur, Maryam Yeganehfar, who now runs one of the most successful event agencies in the country and has an immense flair for the beauty and design of rooms, and myself, who is responsible for the organization and logistics as well as the sale of tickets, tables and boxes.
The Opera Ball is made up of two parts: the one-hour opening block at the beginning and then the rest of the evening, when everyone can throw themselves into the action as they please. Are you probably primarily interested in the opening?
I'm really interested in everything! The diversity of the offer, which you can only experience in its entirety if you are present, is one of the unique selling points of this ball: the numerous halls with a wide variety of music from 1980s disco to waltz and quadrille, the diverse backdrops that you can immerse yourself in, the selection of food and drinks ... The evening is definitely not enough to be able to enjoy the abundance on offer in its entirety.
You mentioned the Opera Ball as your favorite hobby earlier. When does the tension ease during the evening?
Not at all. How could it? It all starts with a photo shoot on the Feststiege, followed by a management reception for artists and invited guests after the doors open at 8.15 pm. TV interviews are scheduled before and after the opening, after which Birgit Reitbauer takes care of the catering, Maryam Yeganehfar inspects all the rooms and I visit various box guests; in between there is another management reception at two o'clock. Last year, however, I actually managed to dance from four to half past four. And with Christoph Santner, who is in charge of the opening committee together with his sister and is therefore responsible for the opening choreography. What can I say? He guided me so masterfully that I had the feeling I could dance magnificently ..
A big topic among ladies is of course the ball gown. Do you need to color coordinate it with the flower arrangements?
More or less. This year it won't be the same color as the flowers, but it will still match. The dress will be designed by the Austrian designer Michel Mayer for the ball and will only be made available to me. It will be sold afterwards. Once a year I'm something of a "public figure", otherwise I'm always behind the scenes.
"I see this event as an important showcase for the company. We must not forget that this is a unique major event with immense international appeal!"
Now a very basic question: the accusation is repeatedly made that the Vienna State Opera is unable to fulfill its purpose of offering opera and ballet performances at the highest level every evening for several days because of the Opera Ball. Why is it nevertheless good and important for the opera house to hold the Opera Ball?
First of all - and many people may not even know this - we are legally obliged to host this ball. It is therefore not a decision for the respective management to hold it or not. Or to put it another way: according to the Federal Theatre Organization Act, the Opera Ball is also part of the Vienna State Opera's mission, which it must fulfil, and, as with the performances, at the very highest level. I therefore see this event as an important showcase for the company. We must not forget that this is a unique major event with immense international appeal! Among the many millions who watch the ball on television, but also among those who attend live, there are countless people who come into contact with an opera house, singers and ballet for the first time during the one-hour opening and perhaps catch fire or at least decide to take a closer look at this genre of musical theater, especially the Vienna State Opera.
In marketing terms, this is a huge gift! And that's not all. The Roščić directorate has also introduced something essential: The highly coveted ranking boxes and stage boxes of the Opera Ball can be purchased first by right of first refusal. And you get this right of first refusal if you are a higher-paying member of the official circle of friends of the Vienna State Opera, i.e. a Donor or Benefactor+. Donor or Benefactor is linked to a payment of 30,000 euros per season. This money, which is so important to us, then flows 1:1 into the State Opera's work with young talent and the operation of the new NEST venue. A right of first refusal, if you like, for all those who are also connected to the Vienna State Opera during the year - and not just once at the Opera Ball.
The second accusation that is regularly heard is: This is the ball of the rich and super-rich, from which the majority of the population is excluded.
When we were able to hold an Opera Ball again in 2023 after a two-year break due to the coronavirus, the financial situation was extremely tense due to high unemployment and the widespread forced short-time working caused by the pandemic. And so we asked ourselves at the time how we could send out a signal of solidarity through the Opera Ball. The result was the so-called solidarity contribution, a surcharge on every ball ticket and on every consumption, which is donated to the Österreich hilft Österreich association. This association was set up by ORF and the country's most important aid organizations and supports people in need quickly and unbureaucratically. Last year, for example, it helped victims of the flood disaster.
These now obligatory surcharges are significantly supplemented financially by another special feature that has also only existed since 2023: This year, for the fourth time, we have succeeded in persuading a renowned contemporary artist or their heir to donate their own work to the Opera Ball. In the first year, it was Georg Baselitz, the following year Herbert Brandl, then Franz Grabmayr's son and this time Arnulf Rainer, with whom we had already made contact in the spring. On the one hand, these works serve as the subject for the respective opera ball poster and, on the other, are auctioned off at the Dorotheum for charity. The proceeds will in turn be added to our solidarity donation. In total, the Opera Ball has so far raised around 1.4 million euros in this way.
And as far as the rich and super-rich are concerned, being able to experience the magic and unique atmosphere of the Opera Ball is a long-cherished dream for many of the evening's visitors, even if they are not part of the financially strong elite. Fortunately, the audience here is also very diverse.
Through the ORF's appeals for donations, the television audience can also participate in the Austria Helps Austria campaign. ORF is an important partner of the Opera Ball. So both sides benefit from each other?
ORF pays for the broadcasting rights and therefore has the most-watched program of the year and can reuse the content many times in the following days. Of course, the ORF is exclusively responsible for editing these broadcasts. However, we work very closely and well together, and the Vienna State Opera has a certain say in the selection of presenters. We also encourage the artists and our celebrity guests to make themselves available to ORF for interviews. So it really is a win-win situation.
Together with the two Santner siblings, you are part of the three-member jury that decides who will be selected for the opening committee after an audition in the Gustav Mahler Hall of the State Opera. What do they look for?
Maria and Christoph Santner pay attention to the quality of the dancing performance. Each of the young couples has to prove themselves in a left-hand waltz. I, on the other hand, look at charisma, self-confidence, the extent to which the couple fits together well and the like. The auditions for this year's ball took place in October - no fewer than 400 couples took part. We also recruit couples from the dance club for people with and without disabilities Ich bin OK. It is important to us to set an example of inclusion here too.
Now the ball is already history at five o'clock on Friday. When will the preparations for 2027 start and which topics will be dealt with first?
The first round of talks with the director takes place just a few days after the ball. Honest feedback from all sides is of course the prerequisite for many further considerations. As we have started to adapt individual rooms over the last three years, we are also looking at where we can continue in this respect. This year, the stage boxes were restored and given a beautiful backdrop, and a new bar will also welcome guests. Other preparatory steps concern the floral decorations, the opera ball theme, the choice of music and the search for partners and sponsors. Of course, the work has really intensified in the last few weeks, but the Opera Ball remains an ongoing topic for the rest of the year.