On September 8, 2026, the 14th Austrian Music Theatre Prize ceremony took place, at which two productions of the Vienna Volksoper under the musical direction of Omer Meir Wellber were awarded:
Omer Meir Wellber, general music director of the Hamburg Philharmonic State Orchestra and the State Opera since 2025 and before that was music director from 2022 to 2025 at the Volksoper Vienna, conducted the production of Ella Milch-Sheriff’s opera »Alma« during his tenure, which was awarded last night at the Austrian Music Theatre Prize in the category »Best World Premiere«. Ella Milch-Sheriff is one of the leading composers of our time; the world premiere of her work took place at the Vienna Volksoper on October 26, 2024, directed by Ruth Brauer-Kvam. The libretto was written by Ido Ricklin, with the German version by Anke Raithman. Find a brief introduction to the opera here.
With »KaiserRequiem«, a work created by Omer Meir Wellber himself during his tenure at the Volksoper Vienna together with the Vienna State Ballet was also awarded in the category of Best Overall Dance Production. The work combines Viktor Ullmann’s Der Kaiser von Atlantis with Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Requiem, thereby exploring the fundamental questions of the human existence. The work’s world premiere took place on January 25, 2025, with Andreas Heise serving as director and choreographer. Find some insights into the production here.
about Alma
The opera recounts the life of Alma Mahler-Werfel in reverse chronological order and focuses primarily on her relationships, her artistic ambitions, and the conflict between her own creative identity and the role attributed to her as a woman at the side of famous men. A central conflict is that Alma initially puts her own compositional plans on hold in favor of Gustav Mahler’s. As a result, the opera also becomes a story about female artistic self-determination and the costs that societal and private expectations can entail.
about the KaiserRequiem
In Der Kaiser von Atlantis, Emperor Overall declares a war of all against all. In response, Death refuses to do his duty – no one can die anymore. As a result, the emperor’s power becomes absurd and is ultimately shattered. Ullmann’s work must be understood against the backdrop of his persecution and murder by the National Socialists. Omer Meir Wellber combines it with Mozart’s Requiem, thereby emphasising the topics of death, power, humanity, resistance, and redemption.