Opera in the French Revolution: Sappho, Medea, Oedipus at Colonus

H-Emotions Opera in the French Revolution: Sappho, Medea, Oedipus at Colonus

Discussion published by Judith Miller on Saturday, April 9, 2016

Dear colleagues, There are just 3 weeks until the performances in DC (Fri., Apr. 29) and NYC (Sun., May 1) of the Opera Lafayette’s "Opera and the French Revolution." The production includes the modern world premiere of excerpts from Constance Pipelet's and Martini's 1794 Sapho, along with excerpts from the Sacchini/Guillard Oedipe à Colonne (1786) and the Cherubini/Hoffmann Médée (1797). The three works draw on eighteenth-century understandings of emotion, and depict the volatile psyches of their principle characters. This is a fully-staged contemporary production, directed Miřenka Čechová, Programming Director for the Visual and Performing Arts at NYC’s Czech Center.

Performances:

Friday, April 29, 7:30pm in Washington, DC Lisner( Auditorium at George Washington University; A pre-performance discussion at the Lisner Auditorium.)

Sunday, May 1, 8pm in NYC Rose( Theater, Jazz at Lincoln Center; A pre-performance discussion in the Noble Room.)

Tickets: https://operalafayette.secure.force.com/ticket

The blog for this production is up and running. The company, founded and directed by Ryan Brown, has performed at Versailles. It has received enthusiastic reviews for its productions and CDs (11 albums on the Naxos label).

I will give the pre-performances talks and have enjoyed watching the production develop this spring. The music is dramatic (a 10-note chord in the finale to Sapho, for instance). Miřenka Čechová and the artistic team will focus on the three principal female characters, all sung byNathalie Paulin. I hope that many of you, especially those in the DC and NYC areas, will attend these performances.

Apologies for X-posting. Best, Judith A. Miller

The cast and artistic team include:

Nathalie Paulin, Sapho/Médée/Antigone Antonio Figueroa, Phaon/Jason Javier Arrey, Œdipe/Stesichore Sophie Junker, Cleis/Neris

The Opera Lafayette Orchestra and Chorus Ryan Brown, Conductor Miřenka Čechová, Director Martin Špetlík, Lighting Design

Citation: Judith Miller. Opera in the French Revolution: Sappho, Medea, Oedipus at Colonus. H-Emotions. 04-09-2016. https://networks.h-net.org/node/6034/discussions/119763/opera-french-revolution-sappho-medea-oedipus-colonus Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. 1 H-Emotions

Petr Bohac, Set Design

Dr. Judith A. Miller [email protected]

Department of History

Emory University

Atlanta, GA 30322 USA http://history.emory.edu/home/people/faculty/miller-judith.html