Dates of Orfeo performances in the Czech Republic

The planned performances of Claudio Monteverdi’s early baroque opera L’ORFEO with libretto by Alessandro Striggio in the Czech Republic will take place in June at four remarkable locations in the Moravian-Silesian region. Probably the first surviving opera in its entirety, it is based on the Greek legend of Orpheus and tells of his descent into Hades and his unsuccessful attempt to bring his dead bride Eurydice back to the world of the living.

The fateful theme will be performed by the winners of the international Let’s Sing Opera Competition in the roles of soloists, accompanied by a chamber orchestra. Choral parts of the Nymphs and the Shepherds are sung by children from the Opera Studio of the Moravian-Silesian National Theatre, together with pupils from Leoš Janáček’s elementary schools in Hukvaldy and Opava on Vrchní Street. The musical staging and the orchestra are directed by the conductor Oliver Dohnányi, the performance is directed by the opera director Luděk Golat. Thirty years ago, as head of the NDM opera, he was also at the birth of the Opera Studio and the International Music Festival of Janáček Hukvalda.

The first of four performances of the opera Orpheus will be hosted on Thursday 20 June by Leoš Janáček Hukvalda’s Elementary School and Kindergarten, which is equipped for this purpose with a social hall that is quite unique for an elementary school. The hall was built to support an important cultural event in Northern Moravia, the Leoš Janáček International Music Festival, and is used for school and community events. The morning performance here is mainly dedicated to the pupils and schools that participate in its preparation.

On Friday, the audience can look forward to a performance of a Greek fable in the extremely impressive backdrop of the partially roofed amphitheater of Hukvaldy Castle, the third largest castle ruin in the Czech Republic. The 2.5 km walk between the meadows from the gate of the Hukvaldské obory to the walls is richly rewarded by the fantastic view of the Beskydy Mountains from the castle motte’s walkway and the unique acoustics up and around the enclosed stone space under the open sky.

Saturday’s reprise belongs to Theater “12”, a chamber theater space of the Moravian-Silesian National Theatre, a place for the activities of all NDM ensembles and other experimental theater projects on the border of genres. The stage is located in the grounds of the Jiří Myron Theater buildings on Čs street. with 12 legions and in a hall for 60 spectators, it offers a very intimate atmosphere and intense contact between actors, singers and the audience. The space also includes the Ve Dvanáctce theater bar.

The finale of Orfeo and his small tour of the Moravian-Silesian region will take place on Sunday 23 June in the Castle Hall of Poruba Castle, which is the second oldest building in Ostrava and the oldest building in Poruba. A small castle with a simple baroque appearance located on the northern slope of the Porubka River is protected as a cultural monument of the Czech Republic, and although it was threatened with complete demolition in 1989, it is now flourishing in private hands.

You can purchase individual show tickets below by clicking BUY:

20.6. from 10:30 a.m. primary school and kindergarten Leoš Janáček Hukvalda (performance for schools)
21.6. from 6 p.m. Hukvaldy Castle
22.6. from 6 p.m. “12” Theater
23.6. from 5 p.m. Poruba Castle