Art and criticism: Laurie Anderson opens Wiener Festwochen 2025

Art and criticism: Laurie Anderson opens Wiener Festwochen 2025

ORF Radiokulturhaus, Wien, Österreich - On May 19, 2025, the opening speech of the Vienna Festival in 2025 took place in the sold -out ORF Radioculturhaus. Laurie Anderson, the American performance artist, kept her speech under the title "Republic of Love". The event, which is led by Milo Rau, addressed basic social questions and appealed to the power of love in an increasingly polarized world. Anderson, 77 years old, devoted herself to the ambiguity between "state of love" and "state of love" in her 100-minute speech and called the audience to deal with the challenges of today.

The opening was ceremoniously initiated by the Mozart boy choir and the performance of William Billings' "David’s Lamentation". In her speech, Anderson not only criticized the older generation for the destruction of the planet, but also addressed the current social grievances. She critically commented on US politics and in particular Donald Trump and spoke about the new Pope Leo XIV and the historic correspondence with John F. Kennedy. She also quoted Cornel West: "Justice is What Love Looks Like in Public" and invited the audience to Tai Chi movements, a gesture that should illustrate the connecting power of music and love.

The motto and topics of the festival weeks

This year the entire festival series is under the motto "V is for Love", an approach that combines over 150 events with socio -political relevance. The program is accompanied by over 40 theater and music productions as well as installations and community projects. Milo Rau, who begins the second season as the director of the Viennese festival weeks, underlines the goal of setting a sign of diversity, love and community with this selection of topics. The festival weeks extend from May 16 to June 22, 2025.

In the context of her lecture, Anderson called on people to recognize the “flood” of the living conditions and ask: “But can we build an ark?” This reflects the challenges associated with the rise of the right, climate change and wars. Your concern is to emphasize the real value of love and solidarity in today's society. In addition, it produced parallels between historical anti -war protests and the current global unrest.

comprehensive program offers diversity

Accompanying the opening speech it became clear that the Viennese festival weeks offer one-linear and diverse program again this year. The opening includes performances by artists such as Nicole, Soap & Skin, Serge Kakudji and the Nino from Vienna. Particular attention is paid to the creation of accessibility, which is why the opening is also offered with translation in Austrian sign language. One goal is to focus on cultural diversity and social relevance, which is also supported by the direction of Felix Breisach.

The Viennese festival weeks are not only a cultural highlight in Austria, but also a platform for social discourse. Laurie Anderson's opening speech is celebrated as a prelude to a festival series that will appeal to both art lovers and people who are interested in socio -political issues. Information on the events is on the official websites of the Wiener Festwochen Festwochen.at as well as in the Wiener Presse wien.gv.at, while detailed reporting also [vienna.at] (https://www.vienna.at/andersonsonsonsons-festwochen-mede between-papst-und-lou-ed/9414389) is provided.