Fledermaus
Die Fledermaus is today regarded as the supreme epitome of Viennese operetta and it enjoys an international popularity at both professional and amateur level. However, at the time of its premiere in Vienna at the Theater an der Wien on 5 April 1874, while it was well-received it ran to just sixteen performances. It achieved much greater success in Berlin, Hamburg and Paris before it returned to Vienna when it did achieve great success, a success which has endured ever since. A tradition has also grown up around the operetta - especially in Vienna - of performing the work on New Year's Eve with guest stars appearing in Act 2.