ARIADNE AUF NAXOS Strauss – Royal Swedish Opera

The composer is stressed. His little opera ensemble is about to perform Ariadne auf Naxos, a grandiose opera of his own making, at the home of a wealthy man. But the very same evening a troupe of players led by the colourful Zerbinetta will also perform, and the two ensembles fight over who is to go first. The threat of cuts is driving the earnest composer to near breakdown. This is the comic prologue to the opera about Ariadne that the audience will be attending after the intermission. After Elektra and Der Rosenkavalier, the composer Richard Strauss and the librettist Hugo von Hofmannsthal were opera’s foremost duo in the first decades of the 20th century. They chose to follow up the two successes with a challenging experiment: an opera about an opera and a story about artistic creation. Ariadne auf Naxos is metafiction in its most enjoyable form, an opera that makes the audience aware of its own role in an entertaining way. It is a comic opera where spoken theatre is mixed with song. Strauss’ shimmeringly melodious and extravagantly orchestrated music is here performed under the baton of the Royal Swedish Opera Music Director Alan Gilbert. Streamed on OperaVision on 9 December 2022 at 19:00 CET and available until 9 June 2023: CAST The Major-Domo Andreas T Olsson The Music Master Ola Eliasson The Composer Johanna Rudström The Tenor / Bacchus Michael Weinius An officer Jesper Taube The Dancing Master Petter Moen A wigmaker Jan Sörberg A lackey Johan Edholm Zerbinetta Sofie Asplund The Prima Donna / Ariadne Christina Nilsson Harlequin Jens Persson Hertzman Scaramuccio Jonas Degerfeldt Truffaldino Erik Rosenius Brighella Klas Hedlund Naiad - a nymph Madeleine Allsop Dryad - a nymph Kari Koskinen Echo - a nymph Agnes Auer Puppeteers Henrik Bäckbro Linn Bergstam Annika From Borg Orchestra Royal Swedish Orchestra Music Richard Strauss Text Hugo von Hofmannsthal Conductor Alan Gilbert Director Katharina Jakhelln Semb Set Design / Costumes Susanne Mûnzner Light Susanna Hedin Puppet Design Kirjan Waage Gwendolyn Warnock (Wakka Wakka Productions) OperaVision is a freeview opera streaming platform, supported by the European Union’s Creative Europe programme. Watch live streams as the performances themselves unfold in the opera house. Enjoy a variety of shows - including opera, operetta, musical theatre, dance, ballet and concerts. Opera connaisseur or curious newcomer, there is something for everyone on OperaVision. WEBSITE: FACEBOOK: TWITTER: INSTAGRAM: TIKTOK: @operavision