Salome

In the organizer's words:

Opera by Gerald Barry | Libretto by the composer based on the play by Oscar Wilde | World premiere | In English, French and German with German surtitles
For ages 14 and up

Salome - Stop! That's an opera by Richard Strauss! Yes, and one by Antoine Mariotte, plus incidental music by Alexander Glazunov and illustrations by Aubrey Bearsley and a song by British rock musician Pete Doherty - and, more recently, an opera by Gerald Barry. They were and are all fascinated by Oscar Wilde's 1891 French drama about the biblical princess who has the prophet John the Baptist executed so that she can kiss his mouth. Wilde's sensual and direct portrayal of a young woman's sexual desire caused a scandal around 1900 and still has an effect today as a psychological borderline experience.
The Irish composer Gerald Barry was Composer in Residence at Theater Magdeburg in the 22/23 season - his opera Alice in Wonderland caused a sensation as the German premiere. Anyone who has experienced this wild par force ride through the world of fairy tales will not be surprised that not everything turns out as expected in his Salome either. The imprisoned prophet parlays in French, the king longs for an idyll on the beautiful blue Danube, Salome reaches for a typewriter, a Frankenstein operation is in preparation - and all of this is based on Oscar Wilde ...