Today : world première of Gerald Resch's children opera 'Gullivers Reise' in Dortmund

Today, the Theater Dortmund presents the world première of Gerald Resch's opera Gullivers Reise, with a libretto by John von Düffel, freely adapted from Jonathan Swift's novel.

photo: www.georglembergh.com

It is the composer's third stage work.

After his ship has capsized in a storm, the young Gulliver is washed ashore on the beach of a strange island. The people are tiny here on Lilliput – or looked at the other way around, Gulliver is unimaginably large to these people. It is therefore no wonder that they fear this foreign giant and would like to hunt him down like a stranded whale. But the clever girl Vaniliput considers the intruder to be harmless and convinces her fellow citizens that they should first become acquainted with him. The good-natured Gulliver needs a very great deal of food by Lilliputian standards, but makes himself useful in return by driving away an enemy fleet from Lilliput’s coast. Through his peacefulness, however, he makes an enemy of the powerful Admiral Skyresch, who is only waiting for an opportunity to harm Gulliver. When Gulliver saves the burning royal palace by emptying the contents of his bladder onto it, the tolerance of both sides is put to a foul-smelling test. (reproduced from the Sikorski Verlag website)

The cast includes tenor Joshua Whitener (Gulliver), soprano Ashley Thouret or Tamara Weimerich (Prinzessin Rosalila), mezzo Almerija Delic (Vaniliput) and bass Luke Stoker (Steuermann / Skyrech). Ingo Martin Stadtmüller conducts the Orchestra and Chorus of the Theater Dortmund. Marcelo Diaz directs.

The orchestra setting is the following (reproduced from the Sikorski website) :

- 2 flutes (also piccolo), 2 oboes (also English horn), 2 clarinets (also alto saxophone in E flat), 2 bassoons (also contrabassoon) ;
- 4 horns, 2 trumpets, 2 trombones (2. doubling tenorbass trombone) ;
- 5 percussionists ;
- harp, piano (doubling celesta) and strings.

The performance should last about 75 minutes, with no interval.

Today : world première of Ravi Shankar's 'Sukanya' in Leicester

Today, the Royal Opera House, the London Philharmonic Orchestra and the Curve Theatre in Leicester presents the posthumous world première of Ravi Shankar's opera Sukanya, with a libretto by Amit Chaudhuri based on the Mahabharata.

The score has been completed by David Murphy.

After a terrible mistake leaves the ancient sage Chyavana blinded, the beautiful princess Sukanya finds herself marrying for the sake of her kingdom. As a pair of swaggering, meddling gods watch this unlikely union blossom, will love grow in the strangest of circumstances ? (reproduced from the Curve Theatre website)

The cast includes soprano Susanna Hurrell  (Sukanya), tenor Alok Kumar (Chyayana), bass baritone Keel Watson (King Shaariyati), baritone Njabulo Madlala and baritone Michel de Souza (Aswini Twins). David Murphy conducts the BBC Singers and the London Philharmonic Orchestra. Suba Das directs.

After the first performance in Leicester, it will be presented in Salford (The Lowry), Birmingham (Symphony Hall) and London (Royal Festival Hall).

Today : world première of 'The long, long journey' by Johan Ramström in Stockholm

Today, the Royal Swedish Opera presents the world première of Den långa, långa resan (The long, long journey), a children opera by Johan Ramström, with a libretto by Sigrid Herrault based on the book by Rose Lagercrantz.

 
It is the composer's first opera.

There is unrest in the land. Ilon and her dog move to her grandmother’s house in a little town by the sea. But war breaks out and she has to flee the country alone. She packs her bag and ends up on a boat crossing the stormy sea. She arrives safely in Sweden, and joins her colourful aunt. War forced Ilon to leave her crayons behind, but now the vibrant sketches return. (reproduced from the Royal Swedish Opera website)

The cast includes soprano Sanns Gibbs (Ilon), baritone Linus Flogell (Sammeli), mezzo Ingrid Tobiasson (Farmor) and mezzo Ulrika Skarby (Elsa / Faster). Musicians of the Kungliga Hovkapellet are conducted by Anna Christensson. Ellen Lamm directs.

The performance takes place at the Rotundan of the opera house. It should last about 50 minutes.

Today : world première of Daniel Sonenberg's 'The Summer King' in Pittsurgh

Today, the Pittsburgh Opera presents the world première of Daniel Sonenberg's opera The Summer King, with a libretto by the composer and Daniel Nester.

The opera was first performed in a concert performance on May 8, 2014 in Portland, Maine. Since then, the opera has been fully revised.

The opera tells the story of baseball legend Josh Gibson. Josh went from the sandlots of Pittsburgh’s North Side to the pinnacle of greatness in the Negro Leagues, before ultimately being enshrined in the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, NY. The opera begins with a father and son debating about great baseball players. When the father mentions Josh Gibson, the son thinks his father is living in the past. But as his father retorts, “Who’s got those numbers today ?”. The Summer King follows Josh at key points in his life, including his playing days in the Negro Leagues as well as in Mexico, where he was awarded the MVP award while playing for the Veracruz Azules. Like all African Americans at the time, Josh was prohibited from playing in the Major Leagues by what was disingenuously referred to as a “gentlemen’s agreement” among the Major League clubs. Sadly, Josh died at the age of 35, felled by a stroke shortly before Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier with the Brooklyn Dodgers. (reproduced from the Pittsburgh Opera website)

The cast includes bass baritone Alfred Walker (Josh Gibson), tenor Sean Panikkar (Wendell Smith), mezzo Denyce Graves (Grace), bass Kenneth Kellogg (Sam Bankhead) and soprano Jacqueline Echols (Helen Gibson).Antony Walker conducts and Sam Helfrich directs.

There will be a new production of this opera at the Detroit Opera House by the Michigan Opera Theatre next year, with a first night on May 12, 2018.

Today : World première of 'Les Zoocrates' by Thierry Besançon in Lausanne

Today, the Opéra de Lausanne presents the world première of Les zoocrates, an 'animal and operatic silliness' by Thierry Besançon, with a libretto in French by Örs Kisfaludy.

It is the composer's first opera.

But...what on earth is a zoocrate? Is it some kind of learned animal, a zoological Socrates of sorts whose name is spoken with a lisp or even a stutter? A...Socratic animal? Why not! Doesn't the writer Eugène Ionesco declare so in his play Rhinoceros? : « All cats are mortal. Socrates is mortal. Therefore Socrates is a cat. » This is pure logic, isn't it? Indeed, but it would be even more (zoo) logical to think that a zoocrate is but the animal equivalent of a democrat. And zoocracy, the equivalent of democracy. (reproduced from the Opéra de Lausanne website)

the cast includes actor Thierry Takahahshi-Jorand (Le chasseur), bass Daniel Golossov (Le Lion), counter-tenor Jérôme Vavasseur (La Hyène), bass Alexandre Diakoff (L'homme-singe / Le marabout), soprano Yuki Tsurusaki (La gazelle) and tenor Fernando Cuellar Leon (Le zèbre). Andrei Feher conducts the Orchestre de Chambre de Lausanne. Pierre Lepori and François Renou direct.

The performance should last about 70 minutes, with no intermission.

3 new programme books in my collection : Battistelli, Fairouz and Nemtsov

I have recently received three new programme books for contemporary operas :

- Giorgio Battistelli : Lot, Hannover, April 1, 2017 ;
- Mohammed Fairouz : The New Prince, Amsterdam, March 24, 2017 ;
- Sarah Nemtsov : Sacrifice, Halle, March 5, 2017.

 The first one is a 64 pages book. It contains :

- synopsis ;
- Klaus Angermann : Experiment mit offenem Ausgang - Vorläufige Bemerkungen zu Giorgio Battistellis Oper Lot ;
- Umberto Eco : Projekt einer Apokalypse ;
- Pier Paolo Pasolini : Ach, meine nackten Füsse... ;
- Julia Kristeva : Toccata und Fuge für den Fremden ;
- Klaus Lelek : A und O ;
- Pier Paolo Pasolini : Die Zerstörung der Selbsteinschätzung ;
- biographies of composer and librettist with black and white headshots ;
- complete libretto in German ;
- complete cast for the first performance (on the last page) ;
- several colour photos of the piano dress rehearsal on March 22.

The programme book is entirely written in German.

The second is a 88 pages book. It contains :

- complete cast ;
- Marijke Schouten : Machiavelli's wijsheid van de straat (Machiavelli's wisdom of the street) ;
- Frans van Dooren : Machiavelli's ideeënwereld (Machiavelli's world of ideas) ;
- Mark de Boorder : Eigentijdse figuren (Contemporary figures) ;
- Eelco Runia : Het Ancien régime zag de revolutie ook niet aankomen (The Ancient Regime did not se the Revolution coming) ;
- Edward Said : Het gezag de waarheid zeggen (Speaking Truth to Power) ;
- Fabienne Vegt : Korte inhoud (Synopsis) ;
- complete libretto ;

The entire programme book is in Dutch. The libretto is bilingual, Dutch and English.

The third and last one is a 16 pages leaflet. It contains :

- the complete cast ;
- May I be Sacrificed - Möge ich geopfert sein, by Michael v. zur Mühlen.

It is entirely in German.

I now have 472 programme books for contemporary operas. All the scanned covers have been uploaded to this flickr folder.

Today : world première of Chaya Czernowin's 'Infinite Now' in Antwerp

Today, the Opera Vlaanderen in Gent presents the world première of Chaya Czernowin's opera Infinite Now, with a libretto by Luk Perceval and Chaya Czernowin based on texts by Erich Maria Remarque, Can Xue and letters of soldiers in World War I.

It is the composer's fourth opera, after Pnima...ins Innere (Munich, May 10, 2000), Zaïde / Adama (Salzburg, August 17, 2006) and And you will love me back (2011). The opera is in 6 acts.

Infinite Now by Chaya Czernowin is the fruit of a montage of a short story by the Chinese author Can Xue and a selection of texts written on the front during the First World War: a novel by Erich Maria Remarque, À l’Ouest, rien de nouveau. In the two situations, a deadlocked situation for which nobody knows the solution, a world war or intimate destitution. (reproduced from the IRCAM website)

The cast includes soprano Karen Vourc'h, mezzo Kai Rüütel, alto Noa Frenkel, countertenor Terry Wey, baritone Vincenzo Neri and bass David Salsbery Fry, as well as actors Rainer Süβmilch (Paul Bäumer), Benjamin-Lew Klon (Katczinsky), Didier De Neck (Luitenant De Wit / Van Outryve), Gilles Welinski (Kolonel Magots) and Roy Aernouts (Soldier Seghers). Titus Engel conducts the Symfonisch Orkest Opera Vlaanderen with an extra quartett (guitar, electric guitar and 2 cellos). Luk Perceval directs.

The score is published by Schott Music. A perusal score is available on their website. The performance should last about 2 hours and 30 minutes.

The orchestral setting is the following :

- 3 flutes (3. also piccolo), 3 oboes (3. also English Horn), 3 clarinets (3. also bass clarinet), 3 bassoons (3. also contrabassoon) ;
- 4 horns, 3 trumpets, 3 trombones, 1 tuba ;
- percussion (3 players) ;
- strings and electronic designed with the collacoration of IRCAM, Paris.

The opera will be performed in Gent, Antwerp (April-May) and in Paris (June).

Today : world première of Giorgio Battistelli's 'Lot' in Hannover

Today, the Staatsoper Hannover presents the world première of Giorgio Battistelli's new opera, Lot, with a libretto by Jenny Erpenbeck.

Giorgio Battistelli has composed several operas including Prova d'Orchestra (Strasbourg, 1995), Richard III (Antwerpen, 2005), Divorzio all'italiana (Nancy, 2008) and Il Medico dei pazzi (Nancy, 2014).

God wants to destroy the city of Sodom because of its moral depravity, but Abraham worries about his nephew, Lot, who is a god-fearing man. Abraham haggles with God about the minimum number of innocents that Sodom must have in order that the city be spared. But the angels of God find only one, Lot, whose family they want to save before the city is razed to the ground. For a single "righteous" is not enough for divine power to prevent the massacre of others. The salvation proves to Lot as a curse. His way leads to uncertainty, where his wife can only hesitantly follow him and is therefore also destroyed. Alone left by his God, he escaped with his two daughters to the mountains, where he lived in social isolation with them like a wild beast, and bears children with them. (freely adapted from the Staatsoper Hannover website)

The cast includes baritone Brian Davis (Lot), soprano Dorothea Maria Marx (1st Daughter), mezzo Stella Motina (2nd Daughter), contralto Khatuna Mikaberidze (Woman), bass Franz Mazura (Abraham) and mezzo Renate Behle (Sara). Mark Rohde conducts the Orchestra and Chorus of the Staatsoper Hannover and Frank Hilbrich directs.

According to the publisher's website (Ricordi Milano), the required orchestra is the following :

- piccolo, 2 flutes, 2 oboes, English horn, 2 clarinets, bass clarinet, 3 bassoons ;
- 4 horns, 4 trumpets, 4 trombones, 2 tubas ;
- timpani, percussion (3 players), piano, harp ;
- strings.

The performance should last about 90 minutes. The first performance will be broadcast live by NDR Kultur.

Today : world premiere of Lliam Paterson's 'The 8th Door' in Glasgow

Today, the Scottish Opera presents the world premiere of Lliam Paterson's The 8th Door, conceived as a prequel to Bela Bartok's Bluebeard's Castle.

(c)Mihaela Bodlovic

It is the composer's first opera.

Inspired by Bartók’s great masterpiece, The 8th Door probes those things left unsaid – the spaces and silences in Bluebeard’s Castle. Performed by a cast of actors from around the globe, it holds up a mirror to the world of Bluebeard, weaving together the poetry of his Hungarian contemporaries and Paterson’s clear and vibrant music. Six singers join the orchestra in the pit, delivering a wealth of textures and sounds to a strikingly beautiful visual story of love and confusion. (reproduced from the Scottish Opera website)

The cast includes mezzo Katie Grosset, baritone Martin Häßler, counter-tenor Daniel Keating-Roberts, soprano Hazel McBain, tenor William Morgan and soprano Emily Vine. Sian Edwards conducts the Scottish Opera Chorus and Orchestra. Matthew Lenton directs.

Both works are sung in Hungarian. The complete performance should last about 2 hours.

New programme books in my collection

I have recently acquired several programme books for contemporary operas :

- Thomas Adès : Powder Her Face, Bologna, November 9, 2010 (95 pages book). First performance in Cheltenham on July 1st, 1995 ;
- Thomas Adès : The Tempest, Wien (Staatsoper), June 14, 2015 (128 pages book). First performance in London (Royal Opera House) on February 10, 2004, for which I also have the programme book ;
- Giorgio Battistelli : Divorzio all'italiana, Bologna, June 11, 2013 (128 pages book). First performance in Nancy on September 30, 2008 ;

 
- Luciano Berio : Cronaca del Luogo, Salzburg, July 24, 1999 (124 pages book, with a 32 pages booklet). World première ;
- Paul Dessau : Einstein, Berlin, February 16, 1974 (16 pages leaflet and 6 pages leaflet in a folder). World première ;
- Moritz Eggert : Linkerhand, Hoyerswerda (Theater Görlitz), May 10, 2009 (182 pages book). World première ;

 
- Peter Eötvös : Tri Sestri, Wien (Staatsoper), March 06, 2016 (124 pages book). First performance in Lyon on March 13, 1998 (for which I have the programme book), and first performance in Wien at the Theater in der Wien on May 25, 2002 ;
- Luca Francesconi : Quartett, Milano (Teatro alla Scala), Avril 26, 2011 (139 pages book). With a separate cast sheet for the third performance. World première ;
- Detlev Glanert : Joseph Süss, München (Gärtnerplatz), March 3, 2012 (48 pages book with a separate 4 pages leaflet with the cast for the 8th performance on April 5 and a 10 pages leaflet with photos). First performance in Bremen on October 13, 1999 ;
- Hans Werner Henze : Phaedra, Firenze, June 5, 2008 (116 pages book). First performance in Berlin on September 6, 2007. I also have the programme book for performances in Brussels in Septembre 2007 ;
- Michael Jarrell : Cassandra, Bologna, October 31, 2014 (73 pages book). First performance in Paris on February 4, 1994, for which I also have the programme ;

 
- Giselher Klebe : Die Fastnachtsbeichte, Darmstadt, Decembre 20, 1983 (40 pages brochure with a separate 8 pages leaflet). World première ;
- Rainer Kunad : Sabellicus, Berlin (Deutsche Staatsoper), December21, 1974 (16 pages brochure with a separate 4 pages leaflet). World première ;
- Alexander Raskatov : A Dog's Heart, Milano (Teatro alla Scala), March 13, 2013 (249 pages book with a separate cast sheet for the third performance). World première in Amsterdam on June 7, 2010. I also have the programme books for the Amsterdam performances and for performances in Lyon (January 20, 2014) ;
- Wolfgang Rihm : Jakob Lenz, Lugo, March 30, 2012 and Bologna, April 12, 2012 (112 pages book). First performance in Hamburg on March 8, 1979. I also have programme books for performances in Strasbourg (September 21, 1993) and Nanterre (October 11, 1995) ;

 
- Salvatore Sciarrino : Luci mie traditrici, Bologna, June 14, 2016 (87 pages book). World première in Schwetzingen on May 19, 1998 ;
- Fabio Vacchi : Teneke, Milano (Teatro alla Scala), September 22, 2007 (192 pages book, with a separate cast sheet for the second performance. World première ;
- Bernd Alois Zimmermann : Die Soldaten, Milano (Teatro alla Scala), January 17, 2015 (200 pages book, with a separate cast sheet for the third performance). The opera was first performed in Köln, on February 15, 1965. I also have programme books for performances in Strasbourg (September 17, 1988), Paris (January 22, 1994), München (May 25, 2014) and Wiesbaden (April 30, 2016).

I now have 469 programme books for contemporary opera. I have uploaded all the scanned covers in this flickr folder.

Today : world première of Moritz Eggert's 'Caliban' in Amsterdam

Today, the Dutch National Opera in Amsterdam presents the world première of Moritz Eggert's Caliban, a chamber opera with a libretto by Peter te Nuyl based on William Shakeseare's The Tempest. Like The New Prince yesterday, it is part of the Opera Forward Festival.

Moritz Eggert already composed several works for the stage including Freax (Bonn, 2007 in concert, Regensburg, 2017), Linkerhand (Hoyeswerda, 2009), Terra Nova (Linz, 2016).

In a society ruled by success, beauty, talent and fame, there is little scope for the underdog; for someone who has never made it and probably never will. Caliban is the ultimate anti-hero. After being abandoned in the forest as a child, he leads a life of slavery. He has a huge inferiority complex, is not very smart and fails in his attempt to free himself. (reproduced from the DNO website)

The cast includes baritone Michael Wilmering (Caliban), soprano Alexandra Flood (Miranda / Trinculo), tenor Timothy Fallon (Stephano / Ferdinand) and tenor Alexander Oliver (Prospero). Steven Sloane conducts the Asko Schönberg Ensemble. Lotte de Beer directs.

According to the composer's website, the required orchestra is the following :

- contrabass flute / flute / piccolo, clarinet / bass clarinet, trumpet, tenor / bass trombone ;
- percussion (1 player) ;
- keyboard / toy piano, accordion :
- violin, viola, cello, double bass.

The performance will take place at Het Compagnietheater and should last about 90 minutes. The work is published by Sikorski.

Today : world première of 'The New Prince' by Mohamed Fairouz in Amsterdam

Today, the Dutch National Opera in Amsterdam presents the world première of The New Prince, by Mohamed Fairouz, with a libretto in English by David Ignatius after Niccolò Machiavelli's novel.

It is the composer's second opera after Sumeida's Song (2009).

Set in the past and in the future, the opera revolves around the publication of an anniversary edition of The Prince. Besides Machiavelli, it features well-known people of our day, including Henry Kissinger, Bill and Hillary Clinton, and Osama bin Laden, as well as a fantasy world ruler Wu Virtu. Machiavelli’s lover is Fortuna, who is also his publisher. (reproduced from the Dutch National Opera website).

The cast includes baritone Joshua Hopkins (Niccolò Machiavelli), mezzo Karin Strobos (Fortuna), bass Simon Lim (President Wu Virtu), baritone Marc Kudisch (Henry Kissinger), singer George Abud (Bin Laden / Prince of Revolution), soprano Nora Fischer (Monica Lewinsky), baritone Paulo Szot (Bill Clinton / Dick Cheney). Steven Sloane conducts the Hague Philharmonic Orchestra and the Chorus of Dutch National Opera. Lotte de Beer directs.

The performance will take place at the Stadsschouwburg and should last about 100 minutes.