Orpheus in the political underworld in Prague

By Frank Kuznik, 08 July 2017

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“If you can keep up with the riot of references, itʼs a hoot”

Reviewed at Karlín Music Theatre, Prague on 6 July 2017

Offenbach, Orphée aux enfers (Orpheus in the Underworld)

Prague State Opera

Jan Chalupecky, Conductor

Richard Hein, Conductor

Michal Caban, Director

Šimon Caban, Set Designer, Director

Simona Rybáková, Costume Designer

Josef Moravec, Orphée

Richard Samek, Orphée

Kateřina Kněžíková, Eurydice

Jana Sibera, Eurydice

Jaroslav Březina, Pluton

Martin Šrejma, Pluton

Jan Ježek, Jupiter

Ivan Kusnjer, Jupiter

Parsifal reconsidered: A provocative improvisation in Prague

Frank Kuznik, 26th March

Timo Riihonen and Ester Pavlů stand out in a strong cast which carries Andreas Homoki's revised version of Wagner's final opera.

****1

Calixto Bieito’s Idomeneo runs out of time in Prague

Frank Kuznik, 28th September

At the Prague State Opera, Calixto Brieito relocates Mozart's opera seria to modern times, with disastrous results.

***11

Reimann's Lear makes for a dark season finale at Prague State Opera

Frank Kuznik, 7th June

Aribert Reimann's Lear takes no prisoners in a disturbing portrayal of a world gone awry, but Barbora Horáková's scattergun direction adds to the confusion.

***11

A politically charged new Manon in Prague

Frank Kuznik, 27th March

Puccini's classic takes on a harsh contemporary edge in a dark treatment by director Sláva Daubnerová at Prague's National Theatre.

****1

A rambunctious Platée revival in Prague

Frank Kuznik, 23rd November

SKUTR's daring direction and Václav Luks's early music expertise combine to bring new vitality to a Baroque classic.

*****

To the apocalypse and beyond: Le Grand Macabre in Prague

David Karlin, 14th June

Nigel Lowery’s new production at Prague State Opera is a gusher of ideas, starting as slapstick but profoundly moving by the end.

****1

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Frank Kuznik

Frank Kuznik is the former Editor-in-Chief and Culture Editor of The Prague Post, Central Europe’s premier English-language weekly newspaper. He currently divides his time between Prague and his hometown in the US, Cleveland, where he covers northeast Ohio's dynamic classical music scene. In Prague he is an habitué of the Rudolfinum, National Theater, State Opera and other storied classical music venues, and an unabashed fan of Czech music.