Vienna is taking action to clear the street of Mozart—or rather, to limit the number of Baroque-costumed look-alikes selling tickets for classical concerts. Any recent visitor to Vienna will have seen flocks of the bewigged vendors clustered at popular points including at the entrance to St Stephen’s Cathedral.
The new rules that will require permits for the vendors and limit the number at busy locations stem in part from complaints earlier in the area by the Dean of the cathedral, who noted that at times as many as 40 ticket-sellers were clustered at the entrance. The Opera House and former Imperial Palace also attract many Mozarts.
The city council office that will be responsible says that there will be consultation with all parties over the areas affected and the numbers. One issue that will come up is that on the one hand there have been complaints about the quality of some of the concerts whose tickets the vendors sell; on the other hand, the sales promote concerts by lesser-known groups that otherwise might not find an audience.
