Opera ball with thousands of police officers [1]
Even in the Mozart time the beautiful and rich people in Vienna met each other at balls and dance festivals. In its present day form, the Vienna Opera Ball [2] goes back to the festivities of the Congress of Vienna [3] (1814-1815). Since 1935 Vienna Opera Ball has been held every year in supposedly the most beautiful ballroom in the world, the Vienna State Opera building. Every year, young Viennese people apply for débutantes to enroll the ball. They are happy to take on dancing in front of audiences and rehearsals, feeling like princes and princesses for a long evening.
Since 1980th there have been demonstrations against the Opera Ball. The demonstrators protest against the luxury of the rich people and instead, direct their attention to the economic crisis and unemployment in Europe, famine catastrophe in the third world, wars or environmental problems.
Until few years ago the demonstrations were quiet and peaceful, but recently there were always more riots, injured police officers and increasing vandalism. In addition to the peaceful demonstrations, other groups protest now, they see the opera ball as a symbol of capitalism and imperialism. The great High Society Event in Austria capital city has now also its dark side. In term of globalization the opera ball represents the problematic structure of the economic power for some critics.
Some prominent guests have not come in recent years because of the demonstration, but the ball room at the opera is still always sold out. People dance the waltz and play roulette; in the side rooms of the opera, there is baroque music and Dixie and in the basement there is a disco. And outside of the door, there are thousands of police officers who put the demonstrators under control.
[1]. Translated by me from: p. 292. Opernball mit tausend Polizisten. Stationen, Ein Kursbuch für die Mittelstufe, 3rd Edition, Prisca Augustyn & Nikolaus Euba, Cengage Learning, USA, 2015
[2]. Vienna Opera Ball. Annual Austrian Society event in the building of Vienna State Opera on Thursday before a religious holiday, Ash Wednesday.
On wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vienna_Opera_Ball
2024 Vienna Opera Ball on youtube:
[3]. Congress of Vienna. (9/18/1814-6/9/1815) was a conference of all European powers to reorganize Europa after the defeat of Napoleon. The https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Congress_of_Vienna
