The symbolist opera Bluebeardʼs Castle, dating from 1911 and composed byBéla Bartók and provided with a libretto by Béla Balázs, comprises severallayers and is open to various potential interpretations. The opera, building ona medieval legend about a blue-bearded knight, seemingly encompasses the mutualdifferences and incomprehensibility between the male and female worlds.
For the director of the performance, Daniela Špinar, however, it is more of a tale about one being in whom both the male and female principles struggle with one another.
The story of Bluebeard about searching for identity and internal struggle does not end with the last note of the opera but lives on in the orchestral composition Dances of Galánta by Zoltán Kodály. Two of Kodályʼs choral songs frame the performance as a prologue and an epilogue. The lively music by these two famous Hungarian composers, together with the poetic verses of Balázs, offers anintimate insight into the soul of a mysterious legend that has, maybe already forcenturies, mirrored our hidden feelings.
The orchestra, male voice choir, and ballet of the Moravian Theatre Olomoucwill participate.
The productionis presented in the original Hungarian with Czech and English titles.
Duration: cca 1 hour 20 minutes, no intermission
Premiere: Feb 17, 2023
