Night Where Mozart Met the Catwalk

Vienna State Opera [ENA] On April 29, 2025, I found myself standing in the glittering halls of the Wiener Staatsoper, somewhere between a fashion show and an opera fantasy. “Fashion meets Opera” wasn’t just a catchy name—it really was a fusion of two worlds I love: the elegance and drama of opera and the bold creativity of fashion. The whole evening was inspired by Mozart’s "Die Zauberflöte".

This already feels like a visual dream with its symbols, mysticism, and magic. Around 40 young designers from the fashion school "KunstModeDesign Herbststraße" took that dream and turned it into reality—on fabric. You could see how they each interpreted parts of the opera, sometimes quite literally with sun and moon motifs, and other times more abstractly, like channeling the essence of the Queen of the Night into a fierce black-and-silver gown. What made it even more special was the space. The models didn’t just strut down a runway—they glided through the "Feststiege" and "Galerierundgang", surrounded by marble, chandeliers, and a few hundred guests who looked just as excited as I was.

There were two fashion shows that evening, at 8:00 and 10:30 PM, and between them, music filled the air: Nastasja Ronck’s electronic soundscapes, live performances by the Bühnenorchester der Wiener Staatsoper, and finally a DJ set by DJ Ume that turned the opera house into something like a surreal club. What stayed with me most was the feeling that this place, so steeped in tradition, had opened itself up to something truly fresh and bold. “Fashion meets Opera” wasn’t just about pretty clothes and Mozart quotes—it was about showing that opera is still evolving, still capable of surprising us, and still very much alive. For me, it was a night full of beauty, sound and movement.