Re: igen
| Opera dates | |
|---|---|
| Title: | Re: igen |
| Shape: | Music theater in ten scenes |
| Original language: | German |
| Music: | Bernhard Lang |
| Libretto : | Michael Sturminger |
| Literary source: | Arthur Schnitzler : Round dance |
| Premiere: | April 25, 2014 |
| Place of premiere: | Schwetzingen Palace Theater |
| Playing time: | approx. 1 ½ hours |
| people | |
|
|
Re: igen is an opera (original name: "Musiktheater") in ten scenes by Bernhard Lang (music) with a libretto by Michael Sturminger . The world premiere took place on April 25, 2014 in the Schlosstheater Schwetzingen .
action
The opera consists of a series of ten short meetings of ten people that lead to sexual union. The partners are passed on like a dance. First the prostitute meets with the policeman, then the latter with the housemaid, the housemaid with the young man, etc., until the privateer finally meets the prostitute again.
Scene 1. The prostitute and the policeman
The prostitute Manuela offers the police officer Franz her services free of charge. Then he has to go to work and also refuses to pay the caretaker. She calls him a "disgust".
Scene 2. The policeman and the maid
The policeman presses the maid Marie, although she is afraid in the dark. She is a little shy, but then gives way. Then he evades her question as to whether he likes her. He lights a cigarette, refuses to take it home and goes to the dance instead. She wants to wait for him.
Scene 3. The maid and the young man
In his apartment, the young man, Alfred, asks the maid for a glass of cold water and asks if Dr. Schüller was already there. She denies this. Then he compliments her and seduces her. Then the doorbell rings several times. When he wants to let her look, she says that it has already stopped. Maybe it was Dr. Schüller. He goes to the coffee house.
Scene 4. The young man and the married woman
The married woman Emma appears deeply veiled to meet the young man. She is ashamed and repeatedly declares that she only wants to stay five minutes. She asks him if he has met another lover in this place. Finally she gives in to his declarations of love. His first attempt fails (“I guess I love you too much”). He is insecure, asks for confirmation of her love and begs for another five minutes. Then she wants to go home quickly and doesn't really want to see him again. However, encounters cannot be avoided.
Scene 5. The married woman and the husband
Emma's husband Karl lectures on the development of love in their marriage, in which "periods of friendship" lead to ever new honeymoons. Before marriage, however, men would become confused by their experiences. She asks him if he had a relationship with a married woman at the time. He claims he cannot love women like that because they lie. He only loved her. Then they remember their honeymoon in Venice. He lectures a little more, says good night and leaves.
Scene 6. The husband and the schoolgirl
The husband meets with the schoolgirl Lily. She drinks and talks about her family. He reminds her of her last lover, who was also called Karl. He takes advantage of her drunkenness and seduces her. Then she is ashamed and blames the wine, which may have contained “something”. He's sending her home.
Scene 7. The school girl and the author
In the semi-darkness, the author Robert covers the schoolgirl's eyes so that she can get used to the twilight. He wants to read something to her and asks her to lie down. He calls them "stupid". Still, she rarely denies him. Then he is enthusiastic, speaks of “unearthly bliss”, describes it with the words “beauty” and “nature” and declares that he is not a writer at all. He wants to go away with her and live alone in nature. She is confused, wants to leave quickly and no further meeting.
Scene 8. The author and the actress
The writer meets actress Pauline (a countertenor transvestite). She had previously lived in this house with Fritz. The chirping of crickets can be heard from outside. She nicknamed him "Cricket" and seduced him. Then she found it nicer than "playing stupid roles". He, however, prefers to have witty conversations. He asks her why she canceled the day before yesterday. She explains that she thought he was "arrogant". She only loved one man: Fritz. For them Robert is just a whim, a “cricket”.
Scene 9. The actress and the privateer
The privateer Johannes brings flowers to the apparently ill actress. He was excited about her last performance. She tells him that she hates people and that she is always alone. He replies that real artists must always be haters of people. She seduces him. Then he calls her a "devil", but quickly corrects himself to "angel". She claims she doesn't want to see him again, but then asks after meeting him tonight after the performance.
Scene 10. The privateer and the prostitute
The privateer wakes up in the prostitute's room and wants to leave immediately. They talk about their age and their life. She claims she is fine. She chooses her suitors and does not take everyone. He thinks she reminds him of someone. He says goodbye and asks if she isn't surprised that he doesn't want anything from her. She replies that he “liked it better” that night. However, he was drunk and cannot remember.
layout
The composer Bernhard Lang regards this work as part of his theater project "The Theater of Repetition". Due to the cyclical sequence of combinations and the repetitive structure, it is particularly suitable for the " composition texture based on different loops " of his music theater works. He uses the loops as an “analysis tool for mechanized and compulsive human behavior”. The music contains a wide variety of quotes, which he used both as a "set piece" (songs by Lou Reed , Japanese otaku dances, melodies by Duke Ellington ) and thematically ( Wozzeck and Lulu by Alban Berg, Jeux by Claude Debussy ). In addition to the classical orchestra, the opera also uses a jazz trio with a synthesizer. According to Lang, the harmony is based on a "spermatozoic spectral structure" of ten twenty-part sounds that are repeated at the beginning and end of the opera and as an "orgasm figure" in the middle of each scene. The musical structure is derived from the experimental films by Raphael Montañez Ortiz . In terms of text comprehensibility, there is a rhythmic spoken song with word repetitions.
Work history
The opera was created in 2012 on behalf of the Schwetzingen Festival . In the composer's list of works it bears the title Der Reigen and the designation "Music theater for 5 voices and 23 instruments". Michael Sturminger's libretto is based on Arthur Schnitzler's drama Reigen .
The world premiere took place on April 25, 2014 in the Schlosstheater Schwetzingen under the title Re: igen. Almerija Delic (The Prostitute), Cornel Frey (The Policeman), Clara Meloni (The Housemaid / The Schoolgirl), Alin Deleanu (The Young Man / The Actress), Amélie Saadia (The Married Woman), Kai-Uwe Fahnert ( The Husband / The Privateer) and Lasse Penttinen (The Author). Members of the Stuttgart Radio Symphony Orchestra of the SWR and the SWR Big Band performed under the musical direction of Rolf Gupta. Georges Delnon was responsible for the direction and the stage . The costumes came from Claudia Irro. It was a co-production of the Schwetzingen SWR Festival with the Center for Art and Media Karlsruhe. In the production, the events took place on the floor of the theater, while the audience sat on the stage and the musicians were accommodated in the boxes. A recording of the performance was televised on June 11, 2016 on 3sat .
In July 2019, the Austrian premiere of a co-production between the Neue Oper Wien and the Bregenz Festival premiered on the Werkstattbühne Bregenz. This time the production was directed by Alexandra Liedtke . The set designers were Falko Herold and Florian Schaaf. Herold was also responsible for costumes and video. The Amadeus Ensemble Vienna played under the direction of Walter Kobéra . Anita Giovanni Rosati, Barbara Pöltl, Thomas Lichtenecker, Alexander Kaimbacher and Marco Di Sapia each sang in double roles .
Web links
- Bernhard Lang : The round dance. Work description from July 18, 2013
- Frieder Reininghaus : Schnitzler, newly carved and tickled - the world premiere of Bernhard Lang's “Re: igen” in Schwetzingen. Performance review of April 27, 2014 in the Neue Musikzeitung
- Udo Pacolt: SCHWETZINGEN / Festival: RE: IGEN by Bernhard Lang. Premiere. Performance review in Online Merker
- Neue Oper Wien: Austrian premiere of the Neue Oper Wien in coproduction with the Bregenz Festival
Individual evidence
- ↑ Bernhard Lang : The dance. Description of the work from July 18, 2013 , accessed on June 16, 2016.
- ↑ Uwe Scheikert: Lame lust. Lang: Re: igen Schwetzingen / SWR Festival. In: Opernwelt from June 2014, p. 43.
- ↑ List of works on the website of the composer Bernhard Lang , accessed on June 16, 2016.
- ↑ Bernhard Lang: Re: igen (world premiere). Event information ( memento from June 16, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) at SWR2 .
- ↑ Dieter Wunderlich: Arthur Schnitzler: Reigen (book tip) , accessed on June 16, 2016.
- ↑ Der Re: igen - opera by Bernhard Lang. Description of the work and scenes ( memento from June 7, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) at 3sat .
- ↑ Peter Niedermair: “Der Reigen” by Bernhard Lang at the Bregenz Festival. Review of the performance in Bregenz 2019 at Kulturzeitschrift.at, August 3, 2019, accessed on August 14, 2019.