Die Fledermaus has been presented during the semifinal of the international competition ‘Ring Award’, on that occasion winning the public prize.
Originally referring to the stock market crash in Vienna in 1873, the whole piece has been rewritten to underline the parallel with the last financial recession of 2008. Now, as then, members of society, instead of accepting this breakup, carry on a cheerful and carefree life, hiding financial collapse under destructive speculations in order to maintain their opulence and elitist lifestyle.
In Die Fledermaus society takes care solely of its appearance: people betray each other, showing no belief in friendship or honesty and, least of all, in love.
Rosalinde has never loved Eisenstein, she evidently married him merely because of his money; Eisenstein is involved in one of the biggest scandals in stock market corruption; Falke, a corrupt politician, has strong connections with the Mafia and invites his friend Eisenstein to a dangerous party organised by one of his mobster acquaintances to revenge an old practical joke played on him. Orlofsky is a teenager, whose father had been one of the most famous Russian gangsters and was killed from one of the rival families. He is now dissipating all the money earned from the family’s illegal business in giving drug- and prostitute-fuelled parties. Rosalinde buys her husband a Cartier watch with an uncountable amount of false money which Falke provides for her; during the night Orlosfky realises that the money he has invested in shares has disappeared and starts to shoot at random at the guests, knowing that some of them (such as Eisenstein) have been the provoking the market’s crash. However, they will all be released after a night in jail through their good connections and continue their dubious business for other companies, exchanging money with Orlofsky’s henchmen. Rosalinde uses this chance to leave Eisenstein and go back with her lover, the Latino pop star Alfred. Eisenstein goes with his friend Falke to the next sadomasochism party, promising him after his recent chastisement that he will never again leave him drunk and in a latex S&M costume on the street as he had done last time during a political campaign in which he was a leading candidate. Adele, meanwhile, becomes the girl of Orlofsky’s right-hand henchman Ivan.
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