Vienna is of central importance in the whole history of drama, opera and operetta, and for more than a century was the only German-speaking city to sustain a theatrical life comparable to that of Paris or London. This is the first general history in English of modern theater in Vienna, covering the period from its beginnings in the 1770s up to the present. It takes full account of the social, political and intellectual contexts of theatrical culture, and provides a wealth of factual information based on original documents and up-to-date scholarship. All quotations are given in English to promote maximum accessibility.