norman lebrecht
June 04, 2026
The Vienna Festival has removed the German-born US tech billionaire Peter Thiel from an event this weekend titled, ‘Armageddon and Antichrist? From Theology to Realpolitik’.
The festival said it had faced ‘an increasing number of politically or ethically motivated cancellations from participants in the artistic program’ which would have ‘weaken(ed) this year’s festival to an unacceptable degree.’
It did not name the artists who threatened to withdraw if Thiel took part.
Thiel, 58, is co-founder of PayPal and Palantir, the first financial backer of Facebook and an outspoken supporter of President Trump.