Zurich Opera House tickets 22 September 2024 - Ariadne auf Naxos | GoComGo.com

Ariadne auf Naxos

Zurich Opera House, Zurich, Switzerland
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Important Info
Type: Opera
City: Zurich, Switzerland
Starts at: 19:00
Acts: 1
Sung in: German
Titles in: German,English
Cast
Performers
Tenor: Brandon Jovanovich (Bacchus)
Soprano: Daniela Köhler (Ariadne)
Soprano: Lauren Fagan (The composer)
Conductor: Markus Poschner
Baritone: Martin Gantner (Music teacher)
Orchestra: Philharmonia Zürich
Soprano: Ziyi Dai (Zerbinetta)
Creators
Composer: Richard Strauss
Director: Andreas Homoki
Librettist: Hugo von Hofmannsthal
Overview

In his last season as Artistic Director at the Opernhaus Zürich, director Andreas Homoki takes on Ariadne auf Naxos, one of the most beautiful and profound operas Richard Strauss wrote.

The richest man in Vienna suddenly orders comic and tragic plays to both be performed at the same time – sending the young composer of the tragedy Ariadne into great turmoil. There’s nothing that can be done to stop it: after all, the gracious gentleman is host to, and pays for, the entire spectacle. And so the contradictory worlds of tragedy and comedy intertwine in the gentleman host’s private performance: the world of Ariadne, frozen in grief and shamefully abandoned by Theseus, and the world of the light-hearted Zerbinetta with her lively Commedia dell’arte troupe. According to Hugo von Hofmannsthal, Richard Strauss’ congenial partner, Ariadne auf Naxos is all about "one simple life problem: that of faithfulness. To hold onto that which is lost, to preserve eternally until death – or to live, to transform and to hold onto oneself in that transformation." Whether in the prelude, which is a bitter reckoning with the daily routine of the theater, or in the opera itself – the figures in Ariadne are in a constant state of limbo between casting aside their own personalities and accepting the roles assigned to them.

The work requires a highly skilled ensemble. Daniela Köhler, whose turn as Sieglinde in Homoki’s Zurich production of Walküre was a success, debuts in the title role. Joining her are Brandon Jovanovich (Bacchus), Martin Gantner (Music teacher), and Lauren Fagan (Composer). The highly talented young Chinese soprano Ziyi Dai takes on the breakneck role of Zerbinetta. Conductor Markus Poschner once again demonstrates his particular penchant for the German repertoire.

History
Premiere of this production: Staatsoper Stuttgart

Ariadne auf Naxos (Ariadne on Naxos) is an opera by Richard Strauss with a German libretto by Hugo von Hofmannsthal. Combining slapstick comedy and consummately beautiful music, the opera's theme is the competition between high and low art for the public's attention.

Venue Info

Zurich Opera House - Zurich
Location   Sechseläutenplatz 1

Zürich Opera House is a main opera house in Zürich and Switzerland. Located at the Sechseläutenplatz, it has been the home of the Zürich Opera since 1891, and also houses the Bernhard-Theater Zürich. It is also home to the Zürich Ballet. The Opera House also holds concerts by its Philharmonia orchestra, matinees, Lieder evenings and events for children. The Zürich Opera Ball is organised every year in March, and is usually attended by prominent names.

The first permanent theatre, the Aktientheater, was built in 1834 and it became the focus of Richard Wagner’s activities during his period of exile from Germany.

The Aktientheater burnt down in 1890. The new Stadttheater Zürich (municipal theatre) was built by the Viennese architects Fellner & Helmer, who changed their previous design for the theatre in Wiesbaden only slightly. It was opened in 1891. It was the city's main performance space for drama, opera, and musical events until 1925, when it was renamed Opernhaus Zürich and a separate theatre for plays was built: The Bernhard Theater opened in 1941, in May 1981 the Esplanada building was demolished, and the present adjoint building opened on 27/28 December 1984 after three years of transition in the Kaufhaus building nearby Schanzengraben.

By the 1970s, the opera house was badly in need of major renovations; when some considered it not worth restoring, a new theatre was proposed for the site. However, between 1982 and 1984, rebuilding took place but not without huge local opposition which was expressed in street riots. The rebuilt theatre was inaugurated with Wagner’s Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg and the world première of Rudolf Kelterborn’s Chekhov opera Der Kirschgarten.

As restored, the theatre is an ornate building with a neo-classical façade of white and grey stone adorned with busts of Weber, Wagner, and Mozart. Additionally, busts of Schiller, Shakespeare, and Goethe are to be found. The auditorium is built in the neo-rococo style and seats approximately 1200 people. During the refurbishment, the issue of sightlines was not adequately addressed. As a result, the theatre has a high number of seats with a limited view, or no view, of the stage. This is unusual in international comparison, where sightlines in historic opera houses have been typically enhanced over time.

Corporate archives and historical library collections are held at the music department of the Predigerkirche Zürich.

The Zürich Opera House is also home of the International Opera Studio (in German: Internationales Opernstudio IOS) which is a educational program for young singers and pianists. The studio was created in 1961 and has renowned artists currently teaching such as Brigitte Fassbaender, Hedwig Fassbender, Andreas Homocki, Rosemary Joshua, Adrian Kelly, Fabio Luisi, Jetske Mijnssen, Ann Murray, Eytan Pessen or Edith Wiens.

Important Info
Type: Opera
City: Zurich, Switzerland
Starts at: 19:00
Acts: 1
Sung in: German
Titles in: German,English
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