Wozzeck at english national opera sara jakubiak as marie and leigh melrose as. With franz hawlata, reiner goldberg, angela denoke, hubert delamboye. Oct 31, 20 wozzeck royal opera house, 31 october 20. Jul 09, 20 sadly theres no video of the latter, but heres the trailer from carrie cracknell s english national opera revival of bergs wozzeck, which relocated the opera to a recessionhit uk with the. He regularly collaborates with innovative directors such as richard jones, christopher alden, calixto bieito, deborah warner, david pountney, carrie cracknell, david alden, john fulljames, oliver mears, graham vick, olivia fuchs, antony mcdonald, annilese miskimmon, and olivier benezech. Leigh melrose as wozzeck and bryan register as drum major. The times this splendid new production from carrie cracknell is intoxicating. Carrie lawless is a singeractor living in new york city specializing in jazz, musical theater, and classical music. British director carrie cracknell makes her eno debut with a new production of bergs twentieth century masterpiece wozzeck. Sep 30, 20 wozzeck, based on the incomplete play woyzeck by georg buchner, was given its premiere in 1925 in berlin and rapidly became extremely successful. The opera is based on the drama woyzeck, which the german playwright georg buchner left incomplete at his death. It was premiered 22 april 1926 in bremen, four months after the better known opera wozzeck by alban berg had been premiered at the berlin state opera on 14 december 1925. To celebrate european opera day, we talk to carrie cracknell about directing her first opera.
Alban bergs wozzeck took over the stage of the 2017 salzburg festival in this production of allstars led by director william kentridge and conductor vladimir jurowski at the head of the vienna philharmonic. May 17, 20 and i have to say that, as drama, carrie cracknell s opera directing debut is remarkably successful. A chilling autopsy of a tragedy, a piercing examination of abysmal despair, wozzeck is an emblematic opera of the 1920s, a harbinger of the unease and aching void of the 20 th century, haunted by war and death, the misery of the human condition set to a music that is economical in its effects and carefully composed, yet whose emotional power grabs the listener by the throat. In the guardroom wozzeck fights with the boasting drum major, full of his conquest, and is knocked down. Soprano sara jakubiak commanded the stage and put across the.
On start the week carrie cracknell talks to jonathan freedland about her new production of bergs opera, wozzeck, and the descent of the central character into madness and despair. Nov 14, 20 this year ive sat through carrie cracknell s wozzeck dryeyed, seen a handful of mimis take their last consumptive breath without so much as a tremor, even heard shostakovichs shattering symphony no. Wozzeck sees soldiers tragedy cut to the heart daily mail. Hildegard behrens sings the wiegenlied lullaby from act 1 of bergs wozzeck conductor. Carrie cracknell s powerful new production of bergs desolate masterpiece translates the opera from early 19thcentury germany into modern britain.
Young director carrie cracknell has worked on devised. Mar 09, 2000 wozzeck is arguably the most influential of all 20thcentury operas, yet for a work of such significance and power it is meagrely represented by great interpretations on disc. Berg created his own libretto by adapting georg buchners powerful play woyzeck, which is itself loosely based on the reallife story of a hairdresser from leipzig who returned from soldiering in the 1790s and, in a fit of jealousy, killed. With the eno wozzeck, directed by carrie cracknell and designed by tom scutt, the audience was confronted by a large, threestoried set with various rooms that were highlighted one by one for the various scenes. Carrie cracknells recent eno production replaced the conventional psychiatric interpretation with a topical social one. It is not farcical to suggest that, for reasons such as these, wozzeck was the best opera that gustav mahler never wrote. Keith warner and stefanos lazaridis grimly compelling wozzeck at. It stars matthias goerne as wozzeck, john daszak as the drum major, mauro peter as andres, and gerhard siegel as the captain.
Carrie cracknells striking new production of bergs bleak opera is a tragedy. Eno london wozzeck carrie cracknell on directing her. As for soprano sara jakubiak, she was a revelation. It was composed between 1914 and 1922 and first performed in 1925. Carrie cracknell is a natural fit for bergs opera a director with an instinctive grasp of emotional nuance, as the charged restraint of her recent a dolls house at the young vic so vividly demonstrated.
On the top floor was a latrine, where no action took place. Changing certain details of the plot, warlikowski nevertheless stays true to the grimy realism of georg buchners play. Both he and his marie, the american soprano sara jakubiak, are. English national opera bergs wozzeck leigh melrose, sara. Wozzeck tells the story of a young soldier of the same name, who is exploited and mistreated by his superiors at the front. Wozzeck is based on a true story of a german soldier pic tristram kenton. Carrie cracknell s powerful new production of bergs desolate masterpiece translates the opera from early 19thcentury germany into modern britain, imaginatively realised in tom scutts. Carrie cracknell s bold production at the eno leaves the audience stunned by its haunting and powerful message, writes kate kellaway published. Wozzeck simple english wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Carrie cracknell s new eno production of wozzeck relocates bergs masterpiece to postiraq, recessionridden britain, and forges from it a bitter indictment of the political failures of our times.
Composer alban berg director carrie cracknell producer english national opera cast includes leigh melrose, sara jakubiak, tom randle, james morris, bryan register. Through his humiliation and the terrors of the battlefield, he gradually loses his grip on reality. Wozzeck opera in three acts to a libretto by the composer after the play woyzeck. Krzysztof warlikowski s staging distills the desperation of trying to scramble up from the lowest rung of society. Im no opera expert, but i didnt hesitate to take on wozzeck. In a tavern garden wozzeck watches marie and the drum major. Carrie cracknells new eno production of wozzeck relocates bergs masterpiece to postiraq, recessionridden britain, and forges from it a. You can follow the students progress over on the dedicated opera works blog. The opera premiered in berlin on december 14, 1925. Wozzeck work alban bergalban berg opera online the.
Wozzeck is an opera by the austrian composer alban berg 18851935. Carrie cracknells powerful new production of bergs desolate masterpiece translates the opera from early 19thcentury germany into modern. Bergs wozzeck, however, is a different kettle of fish. Her first opera, wozzeck at eno was nominated for an olivier award. In this film, leigh melrose wozzeck explains the operas main themes. Berg wrote this opera before the period when he used serialism in his works. And i have to say that, as drama, carrie cracknell s opera directing debut is remarkably successful. Wozzeck s funeral music also in d minormajor, which is heard in the interlude before the final scene, draws upon sketches that a youthful berg, perhaps then at his most mahlerian, once intended for a symphony. In a subversion of the traditional approach as far as any such notion can be applied to a work like wozzeck, opera tyro carrie cracknell forgoes the familiar grotesqueries of german expressionism in favour on the surface at least of stark, contemporary realism. Wozzeck became an instant classic, and its expressive power remains undiminished today.
English national opera bergs wozzeck leigh melrose, sara jakubiak. Wozzeck, opera in three acts by austrian composer alban berg, who also wrote its german libretto, deriving the story from the unfinished play woyzeck the discrepancy in spelling was the result of a misreading of the manuscript by georg buchner. This may carrie cracknell presents a powerful new staging of bergs 20th century masterpiece. May 18, 20 wozzeck is one of the great masterpieces of 20th century opera, and this english national opera version, directed by carrie cracknell is utterly compelling. The american soprano sara jakubiak is equally impressive as marie.
Like bergs opera wozzeck we have 1 answer for the clue like bergs opera wozzeck. Royal opera house tragedy is a great equaliser, uniting operas paupers and princes and levelling the class divide in a volley of blood and betrayal. Katie, wozzeck production nominated for olivier award, english national opera, london coliseum, carrie cracknell brigitta performed press night, the sound of music nominated for two olivier awards, regents park open air theatre, rachel kavanaugh young fiona, shrek the musical, theatre royal drury lane, west end, rob ashford. With combatkitted soldiers and union flags placing us firmly in the britain of today, the director uses bergs bleak work. English national opera bergs wozzeck leigh melrose. I was beginning to think i was getting irretrievably jaded, hardened. Alban bergs wozzeck as he struggles with jealousy and poverty in this powerful tragedy, the psychologically disturbed title character endures ridicule from his superiors and.
James morris, one of the most outstanding of wotans, was a massive vocal presence as a doctor who as wozzeck perceives. With toni blankenheim, richard cassilly, gerhard unger, hans sotin. Bergs wozzeck not only represents the crowning achievement in musical expressionism, but also has to be one of the most powerful operas of the twentieth century. At the royal opera house this week verdis don carlo a drama of kings and empire has hoisted the black flag high, while english national opera have hustled their audience into crackdens and. In the current production, the director carrie cracknell seeks to. In this film, she talks about the resonance of the story and her vision for the production.
With the eno wozzeck, directed by carrie cracknell and designed by tom. Wozzeck has not been seen at eno for 25 years but carrie cracknells powerful new production of bergs masterpiece is a reminder of how. Franz grundheber, walter raffeiner, philip langridge, heinz zednik, aage haugland, hildegard behrens, anna gonda, alfred sramek, brian large, alban berg, georg buchner. A pupil of arnold schoenberg, berg deviates from schoenbergs strict twelvetone and atonal technique somewhat to yield a more intense musical representation of the characters and events. Marie soprano the doctor bass the drummajor tenor plot summary wozzeck shaves the captain, who criticises him for his immoral lifestyle, but wozzeck takes the view that he cant afford such luxuries. Wozzeck tells his friend andres of some visions he has had, sensing something ominous, but andres is unimpressed. Carrie cracknells powerful new production of bergs desolate. Puccinis less known western opera opens at the eno huffpost uk. Making her operadirecting debut here she avoids so many of the classic firsttime pitfalls simply by placing the score at the centre of her thinking. I didnt think it was possible to screw up wozzeck until i saw carrie cracknell s postiraq eno production earlier this year, a misreading that replaced the general with the specific, paranoia with logic, angst with social conscience, playing up to the london audiences tvnourished passion for simple storylines in ultrarealistic settings, no. Carrie cracknell on directing her first opera youtube.
Puccinis less known western opera opens at the eno. You can find out more, including how to register your interest in the 1415 course, over on our website. Others dance and celebrate, but wozzeck, at the prompting of a madman, sees only blood. This new wozzeck at dutch national opera is ugly, and disturbingly brilliant. Mar 15, 2010 hildegard behrens sings the wiegenlied lullaby from act 1 of bergs wozzeck conductor.
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