Since Klaus Bachler has taken over as director of Vienna's Volksoper, musicals, having been part of the repertory since the sixties, have been offered as a bunch at the beginning of the year instead of being spread around.

Therefore, from Jan. 25 -Mar. 8, friends of operettas have to hibernate as musicals dominate the programme of Vienna's premiere operetta house.

This season, the Volksoper hopes to attract audiences with the same four classic musicals it offered at the beginning of last year.

La Cage Aux Folles: Karlheinz Hackl (Zaza) will have a new Georges in Joachim Kemmer in Jerry Herman's smash hit. Performance dates: Jan 25, 27, 28, 29. Feb 4 - 7, 11, 12, 21, 24.

Kiss Me Kate: Elisabeth Kales and Kurt Schreibmayer have already taken over last season from Mario Adorf and Julia Stemberger, who neither critics nor audiences thought were Wunderbar. Jan 30, 31, Feb 1, 8-10, 22. March 1, 2, 8. Der Mann von La Mancha (Man of La Mancha): Karlheinz Hackl, one of Vienna's most popular (and busiest) actors stars as Cervantes/Quixote. He is joined by Robert Meyer as Sancho Panza and Dagmar Koller - the wife of Vienna's former mayor - as Aldonza. Feb. 15 - 18.

My Fair Lady: Lerner and Loewe's masterpiece includes Michael Heltau's Henry Higgins, who teaches Julia Stemberger's Eliza anything there is to know about the rain in Spain. Feb. 13, 14, 19, 20, 26, 28.

Tickets for all these shows can be ordered at +43-1-513 15 13.

--By Bernd Freimueller
Austria Correspondent