75 years of beauty and scandal, 75 years of sacralised art: The Vienna Festival (Wiener Festwochen) declares itself the Republic of Gods for this jubilee year! While the opening events have always been legendary, we’ll double down for this birthday with a show that is both spiritual and whimsical, both spectacular and deeply humane, in short: unforgettable. Patti Smith, the ‘godmother of punk’, is performing together with the Schmusechor choir and the new Vienna Festival Band, Gods Republic; gospel meets punk; classic meets Schlager; new gods meet old gods – it is the good old Viennese tradition of unabashed syncretism! Who, after all, makes up the Republic of Gods, if not all of us? And another thing: we’re celebrating on Heldenplatz this year, Vienna’s most mythical of locations! Whether you’re a sinner or a prophet: Welcome to the Republic of Gods! Admission is free and ORF 2 and 3sat broadcast the event live (delayed starting at 10.35pm).

Featuring Patti Smith Quartet, Cari Cari, Schmusechor, Hänsel, Lara Hulo, Nifty’s feat. Jelena Popržan, NENDA, Braco, Witch Club Satan, Steve Katona, inn.wien Ensemble, VAZISTA, Gods Republic (Sakura, Lorenz Ambeek, Xavier Plus, Stefan Gfrerrer), Marichka Shtyrbulova und vielen weiteren.

The opening will be accompanied in Austrian sign language. In addition to interpreting the speeches, the music programme will be performed in sign language by the artists Alice Hu and Günter Roiss. Visitors on site can use the designated Deaf Space on Heldenplatz. The accessible programme can also be viewed on TV on ORF II Europe and via live stream.