In an opera special, Tom Service talks to David Pountney about his production of Nielsen's Maskarade at the Royal Opera House. There's a look at the enduring appeal of Lehar's The Merry Widow as it opens at Welsh National Opera; a visit to Nottingham as homeless people in the city prepare to premiere of a new opera based on Mahler's Rückert Lieder ; and composer Gerald Barry, and director Richard Jones, talk about the new opera at English National Opera based on Fassbinder's stage play, The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant.
In this programme
The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant
The film version of Rainer Werner Fassbinder's The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant was described by The Village Voice as 'a tragi-comic love story disguised as a lesbian slumber party in high-camp drag.' Perhaps this would explain English National Opera 's controversial marketing campaign, promising an evening of kinky fetishes and sexual desires in Gerald Barry 's new opera version which opened ENO's new season last week. With an all-female cast, it's an opera of dark obsessions, lesbian love, and camp comedy but equally memorable for its music. Tom asks Stephanie Friede, who sings the role of Petra , to tell the tale of the opera and discusses the work with the composer Gerald Barry and the director, Richard Jones.
7 Performances only. Sept. 16, 20, 23, 29 October 1, 4, 7. You can hear the opera live on BBC Radio 3's Opera on 3 on Saturday 1 st October.
Doctor Atomic
John Adams's new opera, Doctor Atomic , on the birth of the nuclear age , opens next month at the San Francisco Opera. To enable audiences to understand the complex history of this piece, the marketing team at San Francisco Opera has launched a huge award-winning website devoted to the new work. This is the first time anything has been tried on this scale in operatic circles. Pamela Rosenberg, the General Director of the San Francisco Opera explains the importance of the web to potential audiences.
You can also visit the San Francisco Exploratorium website for information on their collaboration with the Dr Atomic website .
The Merry Widow
This year marks the centenary of the first production of composer Franz Lehar's The Merry Widow . Welsh National Opera 's new production celebrates the anniversary at the end of the month at the Wales Millennium Centre in Cardiff . But what is it that lends this operetta its enduring appeal? For those steeped in the show's history, there is no doubt that this story of real people will always have a contemporary audience. Nigel Douglas has performed the piece all over the world, and Australian soprano Yvonne Kenny has sung the title role - their passion for The Merry Widow is infectious.
Welsh National Opera production, 30 th September - 8 th December.
Maskarade
Carl Nielsen's Maskarade also celebrates its centenary this year. However, David Pountney's new staging at the Royal Opera House is the first full production of the opera to reach London . It is Nielsen's serious symphonic side that we are most familiar with in Britain but Maskarade is a comedy, an 18 th century story of mistaken identity, in which a lovesick couple use the disguise of a masked ball to make their tryst. It is a story far from the image of Denmark as a place of grey skies and lonely landscapes, but it has become the Danes' national opera. Danish conductor Michael Schonwandt explains the special significance of Maskarade in his homeland and David Pountney talks to Tom about his production.
You can hear Maskarade live on BBC Radio 3's Opera on 3 on Saturday 8 th October.
Streetwise Opera
Streetwise Opera 's latest work with homeless people is based in Nottingham . The company strives to give the usually invisible homeless community a vital, creative voice. Having previously worked on the music of Britten and Handel, this year they are working on a staging of Mahler's song-cycle, the Ruckert Lieder. Director Erica Whyman puts the participants centre stage, so alongside professional musicians, the performers create a spoken, dramatic context for the songs. Tom went along to rehearsals, just a few weeks before curtain up, to find out more about the project.
The Council House, Market Square , Nottingham , 29 September - 2 October, 7.30pm
