Opera

L’Orfeo

Those who sow with tears shall reap with shouts of joy

05 to 06 may 2017

Claudio Giovanni Monteverdi (Cremona, christened on 15 May 1567 – Venice, 29 November 1643) marked the transition between polyphonic and madrigal traditions in the 16th Century and the birth of lyric drama and opera in the 17th Century. He is the most important figure in the transition between Renaissance and Baroque music.

Monteverdi composed the opera Orfeo, based on a poem by Alessandro Striggio for the Carnival in Mantua. It was first performed at the Accademia degl’Invaghiti in Mantua in February 1607 and on 24 February of that same year at Mantua’s court theatre.

Orpheus is the ultimate symbol of the artistic condition, bringing hope and courage to wounded souls. This favola in musica (story in music) is a masterpiece of the nascent genre of opera, telling us the story of Orpheus who loses Eurydice after saving her from hell. It also expresses the magical power of music and its capacity to elevate the world surrounding us and fill it with peace.

The poet, music, and prophet battles against weakness, in a darkened world, constantly threatened by death. He tries to achieve the impossible feat of turning on its head the one certainty of humanity, which is the invincible frontier between life and death. In the underworld, Orpheus tries to face up to his fears, believing that by fighting he can recover his late beloved Euridices, who represents a brief moment of happiness. The beginning seems liberating, but his journey through the underworld brings Orpheus’ fears back to him, along with his solitary existence as an artist facing the human condition.

 

Produced by Teatro Arriaga


The team


Orfeo: Jonathan McGovern

Eurídice: Alicia Amo

La Música/Speranza/Ninfa: Marysol Schalit

Proserpina/Messagiera: Anna Alás i Jové

Caronte: Ismael Arroniz

Plutone: José Manuel Díaz

Apollo: José Manuel Zapata

 

Choir: Kantika Korala

Choir conductor: Basilio Astúlez

 

Orchestra: Orquesta Barroca de Sevilla

Dramatist: Ludovic Allenspach

Stage design and figurines: Eva-María Van Acker

Lighting: Michael Bauer

Choreographer: Adrian Boissonet

Composer and musical performer: Janiv Oron

Performance artist: Hervé Thiot

Performance director: Barbora Horáková

Musical director: Karel Valter

 

Passes

5 May. 08:00pm

6 May. 08:00pm

Prices

from €15 to €54 / discounts

Applicable discounts:

Friends of the Arriaga: from 25% to 35%

Groups, large families, under 30’s and over 65’s, people with a disability in excess of 33% and the unemployed: 25%.

Last Minute Discount: 50% (for the aforementioned groups, except Friends of the Arriaga)

Disabled people in a wheelchair: 50% (stalls in front of the stage and one companion)

Duration

106 minutes no interval

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