For more than three centuries, new operas have been born in the heart of Brussels, a tradition we are proud to continue in the 21st century. Because we firmly believe that The Great Repertoire is not a closed book, but a story to which each era can add its own chapter, full of exciting music, relevant themes and innovative writing. Our era too. That is why we will present one or two brand new commissioned works every season until 2025. You can follow the preparations for these unique productions on this blog.
There are not many of them, the composers who appear on stage for the world premiere of their work, but Jean-Luc Fafchamps is happy to be present for each performance. For Is this the End?#2 he will not only figuratively, but also literally go 'full organ'.
Tableau vivant
In this 'scenic-digital' performance, the singers interact live with a gigantic video altar piece. With its threefold structure, this impressive piece of technology refers to the idea of the 'triptych' in a literal sense, but aesthetically it also recalls the art of the old masters, which clearly inspired the (neo)baroque universe of director Ingrid von Wantoch Rekowski.
"In my career, this is one of the projects that I have learned the most from." Meet The Woman! Mezzo-soprano Albane Carrère is almost ready to transform into the enigmatic leading lady of Is this the End?#2.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CcNQPw_s46k/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link
The last straight line! Today, in our Malibran room, the final rehearsal series for this world creation begins. The cast and the team around director Ingrid von Wantoch Rekowski have exactly two weeks left to fuse all the prepared material into one impressive live experience.
"It's a vicious piece, but it makes me laugh out loud when I'm composing it." Over a coffee, the composer Philippe Boesmans explains what attracted him to Georges Feydeau's vaudeville On purge bébé, and where he stands with his work.
Solar (Icarus burning) takes inspiration from the late 16th Century painting by Pieter Brueghel Landscape with the Fall of Icarus, that hangs in the Musée des Beaux Arts in Brussels, as well as W.H. Auden’s response to seeing the painting during his visit to Brussels in 1938:
‘In Brueghel’s Icarus for instance: how everything turns away
Quite leisurely from the disaster’
In March 2023, composer Howard Moody will follows in Auden’s footsteps and takes another look at Brueghel’s picture. When moving the picture to a contemporary stage, Daedalus and his team of scientists and innovators have to focus their work on sustainable innovation. Icarus is expected to have full awareness of the natural world yet still have courage to test its boundaries. The crowd must face the potential disaster rather than turn away, questioning its own part in the action. The ancient proverb “en de boer hij ploegde voort” (and the farmer continued ploughing) is no longer an adequate defence.
'Decipherable only by me'. The score-in-progress of On purge bébé, on the table of composer Philippe Boesmans.
In the 2022-23 season, La Monnaie does justice to its reputation as a house of creations. Besides On purge bébé, General and Artistic Director Peter de Caluwe also announced Solar during today's season presentation. This new 'environmental opera' by composer Howard Moody is based on Pieter Bruegel the Elder's painting Landscape with the Fall of Icarus. Follow its creation on this page.