Theatre of the World

Theatre of the World is the fifth and last opera by Dutch composer Louis Andriessen, with a libretto by Helmut Krausser. Subtitled A Grotesque Stagework in 9 Scenes,[1] the work concerns itself with the life of 17th-century Jesuit scholar Athanasius Kircher and was premiered at the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles 6 May 2016, a co-production between Los Angeles Philharmonic and Dutch National Opera, conducted by Reinbert de Leeuw. The title alludes to the Catholic idea that life is a great play with God as the author, a concept also found in Shakespeare's "All the world's a stage" passage.

This article is about the 2016 opera. For the 1570 atlas, see Theatrum Orbis Terrarum.
Theatre of the World
A Grotesque Stagework in 9 Scenes
Opera by Louis Andriessen
Athanasius Kircher, the main character
LibrettistHelmut Krausser
LanguageMultiple Language
Based onLife of Athanasius Kircher
Premiere
6 May 2016 (2016-05-06)
Los Angeles

Roles
Roles, voice types and premiere cast
Role Voice type[2] Premiere cast, 6 May 2016
Conductor: Reinbert de Leeuw
Athanasius Kircher baritone Leigh Melrose
The Boy soprano Lindsay Kesselman
Pope Innocenzo XI tenor Marcel Beekman
Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz voice Cristina Zavalloni
Janssonius spoken Steven Van Watermeulen
Carnifex baritone Mattijs van de Woerd
Voltaire voice Timur
Descartes voice Tim Gonzales
Goethe voice David Castillo
Leibniz voice Scott Graff
Witch voice Charlotte Houberg
Witch voice Sophie Fetokaki
Witch voice Ingeborg Bröchler
'He' voice Martijn Cornet
'She' voice Nora Fischer

Synopsis

Kircher, aged 76, meets a boy of about twelve years who we learn is the devil. He takes the unsuspecting Kircher, together with his patron Pope Innocent XI (who cannot see the boy), on a magical journey through ancient Egypt, China and Babylon. Kircher was renowned for building fanciful theories based on weak material and as the journey unfolds his outlandish ideas begin to unravel before our eyes. Kircher starts to become increasingly anxious and suspicious. We learn that earlier in his life, Kircher had mistakenly given his soul to the devil instead of to God during his narrow escape from Protestant mercenaries. The boy now curses Kircher and orders him to be broken by illness. On his deathbed Kircher requests the hangman to cut out his heart and take it to a shrine of the Virgin. On doing so, the boy grabs the heart and eats it only to discover that Kircher's soul has evaded him.

The opera is scored for the singers and full orchestra plus eight guest musicians playing: clarinet, bass clarinet, alto saxophone, tenor saxophone, percussion, keyboards, bass guitar and electric guitar.

Reception

There was a mixed reception to the stage work and subsequent CD release. Gramophone wrote that Andriessen's score was "Immediate, transparent and almost disarmingly direct"[3] while Opera News noted Andriessen was trying a softer approach: "A welcome change from his works' usual sensory overload, though the score drags during its many bland transitional passages."[4] Music & Literature said "Marked by a consistency of texture and polished with stunning orchestrational élan, Andriessen's music managed to effectively underscore the truly grotesque array of action on stage, while somehow remaining elegant at all times. It was stunning."[5] The Guardian said of the recording "a superb surreal journey".[6] The Los Angeles Times claims it will "stand the test of time".[1]

Language

Krausser's libretto is written in seven languages. German is the most frequent while English, Latin, Spanish, Old Dutch, Italian and French can occur mid-sentence. Kircher's first line for example "..In questa necropoli I enjoy my melancholy". Stageraw's Myron Meisel wrote "It's all too polyglot and prolix to be considered a masterpiece, let alone accessible.."[7]

References
  1. Swed, Mark (10 May 2016). "Review: Why Andriessen's daring and difficult Theatre of the World will stand the test of time". Los Angeles Times.
  2. Potter, Keith and Gann, Kyle (eds.) (2016). The Ashgate Research Companion to Minimalist and Postminimalist Music, p. 138. Routledge. ISBN 1-317-04255-7
  3. Siôn, Pwyll ap (November 2017). "Andriessen Theatre of the World". Gramophone. Retrieved 10 July 2021.
  4. Cadagin, Joe (January 2018). "Andriessen Theatre of the World". Opera News. Retrieved 10 July 2021.
  5. "Louis Andriessen's Theatre of the World". Music & Literature.
  6. Clements, Andrew (28 September 2017). "Andriessen: Theatre of the World CD review – a superb, surreal journey". The Guardian.
  7. Meisel, Myron (31 May 2016). Theatre of the World: A Grotesque Stagework in 9 Scenes (L.A. Philharmonic); The Impresario & First the Music, Then the Words (Pacific Opera Project) stageraw.com May
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