When Britten conducted the opera's premiere, in its original form of four acts, the performance received 15 curtain calls. Critical reaction to the premiere, according to a December 1951 "New York Times" article, was "a very good press and a very fair one, enthusiastic if not really ecstatic". "Billy Budd" received its United States premièred in 1952 in performances by Indiana University Opera Company. In 1952, NBC television presented a condensed version of the opera. Performances of the original version fell off in number in the subsequent years. The original four-act version has been occasionally revived, such as at the Vienna State Opera in 2001 and 2011.