Local premiere in Kirchstetten – noe.ORF.at

Bizarre humor is a feature of the festival “I pazzi per progetto” (“The deliberate fools”), as the festival description says. The venue is a mental hospital in Paris. In addition to the truly sick people, there are also those who come to the institution because of divorce and inheritance matters.

“Among the newcomers are Christina, her miserly keeper Venanzio – who wants to declare his ward mad in order to obtain her inheritance – as well as the deserted military trumpeter Eustachio and Colonel Plenval, known for his amorous adventures,” the play’s description reads. A married man’s admirer, wives said to be dead but in excellent health who pretend to be mad – there is scope for many misunderstandings in the one-act play.

The maximum number of visitors is 160 in the “smallest opera house” (as the organizers say). The artistic goal is to make the opera “closely accessible and tangible”. Technology or props are used less. Music and sounds are in the foreground.

The Fools celebrates its premiere on July 26 and plays through August 10. It is the 26th season for artistic director Stefan Gartner, who completed a five-year focus on Rossini last year. Gartner is quoted as saying that this year’s opera is “a rare bel canto opera.”

Hollywood music, pizza, jaws and the four seasons

In addition to the opera performances, the KlassikFestival Kirchstetten also invites you to an open-air supporting programme. The “Klassik unter Sternen” performance on 14 August will include an arrangement of Vivaldi's “The Four Seasons” for violin, guitars and symphony orchestra. A “completely new version” is being created under the direction of the “Copario” ensemble and the Moravian Philharmonic Orchestra.

The “Hollywood Voice” is featured in the program in a summer concert on August 17, with the TU Vienna Orchestra playing. Pizzera & Jaus will celebrate their Kirchstetten debut on August 23 with their program “Comedian Rhapsody”.

Kirchstetten Castle has been used as a venue for cultural events for many years. The building was unused for many years, but was renovated as part of the State Exhibition of Lower Austria. The core of the building dates back to the 16th century and has been rebuilt several times.