Arena is a

cultural centre A cultural center or cultural centre is an organization, building or complex that promotes culture and arts. Cultural centers can be neighborhood community arts organizations, private facilities, government-sponsored, or activist-run. Africa * ...

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

. From its 1970s origins in an abandoned former slaughterhouse used for the

Vienna Festival The Vienna Festival (Wiener Festwochen) is a culture festival that takes place in Vienna for five or six weeks in May and June every year. The Vienna Festival was established in 1951, when Vienna was still occupied by the Participants in World W ...

, the Arena grew into a centre for

alternative culture Alternative culture is a type of culture that exists outside or on the fringes of mainstream or popular culture, usually under the domain of one or more subcultures. These subcultures may have little or nothing in common besides their relative ...

. It is located at Baumgasse 80 in the

Landstraße Landstraße (; ; "Country Road") is the 3rd municipal district of Vienna, Austria (). It is near the center of Vienna and was established in the 19th century. Landstraße is a heavily populated urban area with many workers and residential homes. ...

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History

The Arena traces its origin to when the director of the

(German: ''Wiener Festwochen''), Ulrich Baumgartner, hosted theatre and cabaret productions from across Europe in the Museum of the 20th Century (''Museum des 20. Jahrhunderts''), which is now the ''

21er Haus Belvedere 21, formerly 21er Haus or Einundzwanziger Haus (), is a modernist style steel and glass building designed by Austrian architect Karl Schwanzer (1918–1975). Originally constructed as the Austrian pavilion or temporary showroom for the ...

''. In 1975, the Arena moved to a derelict former

slaughterhouse In livestock agriculture and the meat industry, a slaughterhouse, also called an abattoir (), is a facility where livestock animals are slaughtered to provide food. Slaughterhouses supply meat, which then becomes the responsibility of a mea ...

(''Auslandsschlachthof'' for performances of

Jérôme Savary Jérôme Savary (27 June 1942 – 4 March 2013) was an Argentine-French theater director and actor. His work has democratized and widened the appeal of musical theater in France, drawing together and blending such genres as opera, operetta, and mus ...

's Grand Magic Circus. Soon after, some of the structures within the vast campus of the slaughterhouse were slated for demolition. On June 27, 1976, when the performances of a musical ended their run at the Arena, the audience was encouraged to stay and squat in the buildings. A banner was unveiled which said "Staying here is solidarity" (

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

: ''Hierbleiben ist Solidarität''. There were around 700 activists, who called themselves ''Arenauten''. Throughout July, participants organised cafés, a cinema, a women's house, a kids' house, a university and a theatre. A city newspaper was founded which is still in existence ('' der Falter''. More than a thousand people lived on the site, which had 12 buildings and was about the same size as Christiania in

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...

. After performing there,

Leonard Cohen Leonard Norman Cohen (September 21, 1934November 7, 2016) was a Canadian songwriter, singer, poet, and novelist. Themes commonly explored throughout his work include faith and mortality, isolation and depression, betrayal and redemption, soc ...

called it "the best place to be in Vienna." A summer party drew 8,000 people. All the events were free and received favourable coverage by the mainstream media. Thousands of people attended events until October, when the Arena was relinquished, as a result of both internal squabbles and pressure from the City Council. Two days later, it was mostly demolished, but the council tolerated the squatters staying in one remaining building, namely the domestic

abattoir In livestock agriculture and the meat industry, a slaughterhouse, also called an abattoir (), is a facility where livestock animals are slaughtered to provide food. Slaughterhouses supply meat, which then becomes the responsibility of a meat ...

(''Inlandschlachthof''. Alongside other still existing projects such as the Amerlingerhaus, Ernst-Kirchweger-Haus and WUK (''Werkstätten und Kulturhaus''), the Arena is a product of the 1970s and 1980s

autonomous In developmental psychology and moral, political, and bioethical philosophy, autonomy is the capacity to make an informed, uncoerced decision. Autonomous organizations or institutions are independent or self-governing. Autonomy can also be defi ...

movement in Vienna.

Activities

The Arena has become an important centre for alternative culture in Vienna, hosting concerts, exhibitions and an open-air cinema in the courtyard. As well as the large hall, which has hosted bands like

Arctic Monkeys Arctic Monkeys are an English Rock music, rock band formed in Sheffield in 2002. They comprise lead singer Alex Turner, drummer Matt Helders, guitarist Jamie Cook and bassist Nick O'Malley. The co-founder and original bassist Andy Nicholson ...

and

Sonic Youth Sonic Youth were an American rock band formed in New York City in 1981. Founding members Kim Gordon (bass, vocals, guitar), Thurston Moore (lead guitar, vocals) and Lee Ranaldo (rhythm guitar, vocals) remained together for the entire history of ...

, there are two smaller rooms for events.

In popular culture

* In 1977, Josef Aichholzer,

Ruth Beckermann Ruth Beckermann (born 1952) is an Austrian filmmaker and writer, who lives and works in Vienna and Paris. Her films have been shown at prestigious festivals, and ''Paper Bridge'' and ''East of War'' won several major awards. Early life and e ...

and Franz Grafl made a film called ''Arena Besetzt'' about the 1976 occupation of the Arena.

References

Bibliography

* * * * * * * * * *

External links

Official website
{{Authority control 1976 establishments in Austria Adaptive reuse of industrial structures Autonomism Cultural centers in Europe Culture in Vienna Music venues in Austria Squats 20th-century architecture in Austria