Bregenz Festival 2011 The complete programme in detail André Chénier, the most famous work by the Italian composer Umberto Giordano, appealing both as a passionate love story and a historical thriller, will be performed at Bregenz for the first time on the Seebühne stage in the summer of 2011 and 2012. The first in a series of new compositions to be performed at the Festspielhaus is the opera Achterbahn / Miss Fortune by the well-established British composer Judith Weir, whose work is showcased in summer 2011in a programme section entitled Creation. Set against the background of the French Revolution, the opera André Chénier, premiered in 1896 at La Scala Milan, is a historical drama of brilliant clarity and a human tragedy of devastating intensity. The central figure is the French poet of that name, a historical figure who was caught up in the turmoil of the Revolution, at first as an enthusiastic supporter and then as a victim, mercilessly persecuted and ultimately sent to the guillotine. The premiere of the opera on the Seebühne is on 20 July 2011. A young woman who meets with misfortune, blows of fate and unexpected flukes: the opera Achterbahn by Judith Weir is the first in a series of new operas to be performed at the Festspielhaus in summers to come. Achterbahn is a story about fate, a kind of parable about the ups and downs of life. Inspired by a Sicilian folk tale, the opera shows that we are often incapable of judging the various trials of life in the moment they occur. The premiere is on 21 July 2011. Delusions and confused perceptions abound in this work which moves back and forth across the boundaries of dream and reality: Judith Weir's chamber opera Blond Eckbert. The production, guaranteed to haunt and fascinate audiences, will be staged at the Theater am Kornmarkt. Though it begins like a seemingly harmless fairy tale, the story turns into a disturbing psychodrama in which the boundaries between delusion and reality are increasingly blurred. The premiere is on 6 August 2011. In the orchestral concerts this year the Bregenz Festival celebrates creators and the creative act. The musical focus is placed on a variety of creative individuals whose -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Bregenz Festival 2011 page 1 of 25 sensitive spirit, exuberant imagination and unique creativity have exercised a profound influence on the art, literature and music of past centuries. These individuals include Byron, Goethe, Shakespeare and Michelangelo as well as the contemporary composers who will be showcased at the festival in 2011 and 2012: Judith Weir and Detlev Glanert. Among the highlights are the two concerts to be given by the Hallé Orchestra under Sir Mark Elder. The Music & Poetry programme returns to the Seestudio following its great success last year. In summer 2011, Deutsches Theater Berlin will put on two remarkable plays in Bregenz this summer – Gorky's Children of the Sun, highly praised by the critics, and Roland Schimmelpfennig's Peggy Pickit Sees the Face of God in a production by the Austrian star director Martin Kušej. Not only that: it will also be bringing some big-name actors to the stage of the Kornmarkt Theatre: Nina Hoss, Maren Eggert, Norman Hacker, Ulrich Matthes and Sophie von Kessel. Another novelty will be the guest performances by the Vienna Schauspielhaus, which has made a name for itself in recent years as a workshop for young authors and contemporary dramatists. It will be performing the play Orphans - written in 2009 by the English playwright Dennis Kelly - at the Theater Kosmos. What does singing have to do with frustration? What's the link between libido and creativity? And what becomes of our bodies in an increasingly technologised world? These questions will be explored by Art of our Times in 2011 in three events: a "complaints choir", the music theatre production entitled Home Work by François Sarhan, and As If Stranger, a multi-media performance by the American dancer Richard Siegal. The crossculture programme offers young people an opportunity - not only during the festival - to experiment creatively together and find out what they enjoy and where their talents lie. The 2011 programme includes the old favourites crossculture night and the Children's Festival, as well as a return of crossculture week. The family concert The magical sound and the scoundrels shows how, with the help of music, you can overcome your biggest fears and use rhythm to keep that trembling knee under control. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Bregenz Festival 2011 page 2 of 25 Opera on the Seebühne stage Ardent passion, breathtaking pace André Chénier by Umberto Giordano André Chénier, the most famous work by the Italian composer Umberto Giordano, has huge appeal both as a passionate love story and a historical thriller. Based on the life of a historical figure from the French Revolution who was guillotined in 1794 during Robespierre's reign of terror, the opera will be performed at Bregenz for the first time on the Seebühne stage in the summer of 2011 and 2012. The premiere is on 20 July 2011. Turmoil of the Revolution France in the year 1789. The aristocracy revels, the people groan. And between two stools stands the poet André Chénier. Cherished by the rich for his moving verses, in his heart he remains a revolutionary. Set against the background of the French Revolution, the opera André Chénier, premiered in 1896 at La Scala Milan, is a historical drama of brilliant clarity and a human tragedy of devastating intensity, appealing both as a passionate love story and a historical thriller. The central figure is the French poet of that name, a historical figure who was caught up in the turmoil of the Revolution, at first as an enthusiastic supporter and then as a victim, mercilessly persecuted and ultimately sent to the guillotine for his opposition to the Jacobin reign of terror. Persecuted by the revolution he supported At the start of the opera, the world of the 18th century still appears to be intact and enduring. The aristocracy dances; and the young poet André Chénier, although favouring the ideals of the new revolutionary movement, is a guest in the noble salons of the de Coigny family, whose daughter Maddalena he is passionately in love with. However, the political situation is tense and the first signs of revolutionary upheaval are already looming on the horizon: soon it will bring their carefree living to an end. Five years later nobody is dancing any more. Paris trembles under Robespierre's regime, and the high-flown revolutionary ideals of liberty, equality and fraternity have given place to cruel tyranny. Carlo Gérard, a former servant to the de Coigny family and Chénier's rival for Maddalena's affections, has risen to a leading position in revolutionary France, -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Bregenz Festival 2011 page 3 of 25 while the poet is persecuted for his criticism of Robespierre's reign of terror. And thus Chénier and Maddalena get caught up in the wheels of history, and all that remains of their liberty is their love – and with it the tragic decision to die together on the scaffold. Music of stirring emotion Giordano's score is exuberant, ferocious and stirring, and the work culminates in a hymn to fraternity, love – and liberty in death. The composer incorporated historical dances and marches from the time before the French Revolution in the operatic score, along with classic revolutionary songs like "Ça ira" and the Marseillaise. Together with rousing arias and thrilling duets they lend a unique flavour to the opera. Schirmer, Warner, Fielding, Cunningham In André Chénier the Vienna Symphony Orchestra will be conducted by Ulf Schirmer, who previously conducted the Seebühne production of Tosca and who is a co-initiator of and expert in the sound system specially developed for the Seebühne (known as BOA, Bregenz Open Acoustics). The opera will be directed by the Keith Warner, and the set has been designed by fellow Briton David Fielding. The costumes have been designed by the American Constance Hoffmann, and the lighting designer is Davy Cunningham. The premiere of André Chénier is on 20 July 2011. "As though composed just for the Seebühne!" David Pountney about André Chénier "It's as though André Chénier was composed specially for the Seebühne stage! The opera presents the perfect mix of ingredients for the venue: a thrilling story, music of great emotional intensity, and four strong characters caught between the extravagance of the Ancien Régime and the brutality of the French Revolution. At the centre of the action stands the poet André Chénier, a real historical character and a passionate and creative spirit who is devoted to his art but compelled by his conscience to place his hand in the hellfire of history. His adversary is Carlo Gérard, once a servant and now a revolutionary ringleader. And there's also the young noblewoman Maddalena, who is fleeing from the rebels, aided by her maidservant Bersi, who objectifies herself as a prostitute in order to support her mistress financially. Giordano's music is verismo of the very highest calibre and drives the high-voltage plot forward at a breathtaking pace." -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Bregenz Festival 2011 page 4 of 25 Opera at the Festspielhaus Keep calm and carry on! Achterbahn / Miss Fortune by Judith Weir A young woman on the wheel of fortune, encountering cruel blows of fate and happy flukes: the first in a series of new compositions to be performed at the Festspielhaus is the opera Achterbahn (Miss Fortune) by Judith Weir, a co-production with the Royal Opera Covent Garden in London. The premiere is on 21 July 2011. Achterbahn is the story of a young woman whose well-off family suddenly becomes poor.