Orpheus

Orpheus or Die wunderbare Beständigkeit der Liebe by the great baroque master Georg Philip Telemann will be this summer's big event at Vadstena Castle. The Orpheus manuscript was discovered as late as in the 1990s and Vadstena-Akademien is indeed looking forward to stage this brilliant opera for the first time ever in the Nordic countries.

 

Orpheus is a large-scale opera from 1726 and the libretto is written in German, Italian and French. The music, composed in an extremely skilful and charming way, is also in German as well as in French and Italian style; virtuous Italian arias, French pastorals and German sentiment form an entity that it is out of the ordinary and typical for Telemann, who was an avant-gardist constantly renewing his music and looking for new influences.

 

 

Telemann’s Orpheus is more “blood stained” than Gluck’s famous opera about the love story between Orpheus and Eurydice. One of the main characters in Telemann's opera is the hot-tempered queen Orasia. Her schemes lead to Eurydike's death, When Orasia realizes that Orpheus have no feelings whatsoever for her she orders the Bacchants to tear him into pieces. After having a vision of how Orpheus and Eurydice are united in heaven Orasia commits suicide.

 

Love, jealousy, vicious death and violent revenge are mixed in this opera with amazing singing roles
and great contrasts. 

 

 

Production team

Director: Clara Swärd

Musical leader: Andreas Edlund

Sets and costume: Marika Feinsilber

Light design: Anna Wemmert

Whigs and makeup: Anne-Charlotte Reinhold

 

Singers

Orpheus: Richard Lindström,baritone

Orasia: Kajsa Lindberg, soprano

Eurydice: Ingrid Berg, soprano

Ismene /Cephisa: Johanna Wallroth, soprano

Eurimedes: Georg Källström, tenor

Pluto: Mikael Horned, baritone

Ascalax: Monika Jägerova, mezzo soprano

 

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Performances: July 19,22,23,25,26,28,29 at 18.30 August 1,2 at 18.30, 4 at 16.00,5,7 at 18.30

Tickets: Available at: www.nortic.se