MEDIATHEK

The Peasant Opera - The performance is based on a ballad whose variations have recurred since ancient times. Classical motifs of incest, clandestine parenthood and infanticide are brought together with distinctive motifs of Hungarian folk ballads. The happy lovers of his opera are in fact cousins and the baby that is to be born will come from an incest relationship. Its own parents killed the father of the bride (who is at the same time a brother of the bridegroom) because of money. Past events come to life and we witness sins commited a long time ago. Characters from the past and the present meet and communicate in the real time of the performance. Shifts and jumps of time give the production an intricately dynamic rhythm. The combination of various music genres has created an original language. Inserted recitatives accompanied by the cembalo follow the interpretation of the arias which work with the patterns of Hungarian folk music. The delivery of folk songs is authentic with the appropriate instrumentation. Baroque recitatives are purposely adapted to this new style and achieve a humour full of musical and language puns. The changing styles follow the literary management of the story strictly and logically.

Reviews:
"The production is a wild and courageous mixture of a baroque opera and Hungarian folk music. As a professional singer I must salute the choral performance of protagonists."
(by Balázs Fellegi, opera singer)

"A simple story is staged in an imaginative literary management with cuts into the past. A mixture of pastiche and parody is offered with a brilliant sense for proportions. Béla Pintér's direction is totally unrestrained."
(by Tamás Koltai, critic)

"The Peasants' Opera is without doubt the best production of the year."
(by Tamás Ascher, director)

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12th International Festival Theatre Pilsen Booklet (Printed Edition)