Johann Strauss’ operetta masterpiece Die Fledermaus is about to get another major reworking in Brussels in December 2012 after the recent Canadian version. The celebrated opera house La Monnaie in Brussels will feature a show by director Ádám Fischer.
“Die Fledermaus” was composed in 1874, in the midst of economic and social disaster (is there a parallel with today?). The jubilation and vitality of the piece is helped along by some of opera’s most famous arias and waltzes.
Die Fledermaus: the thrill of seduction
The characters of Die Fledermaus (The Bat) are at a masked ball in Vienna and each of them, in disguise, seeks the thrill of seduction. After several cases of mistaken identity and trickery, ‘King Champagne’ is blamed by everyone as the reason behind all the problem. The work was adapted from the French version Le Réveillon, and is traditionally performed in Vienna each year on New Year’s Eve.
This version is directed by Hungary’s Ádám Fischer, best known as founder and Chief Conductor Austro-Hungarian Haydn Orchestra and Chief Conductor with the Danish National Chamber Orchestra. He is noted for his work on Haydn and Mozart. The cast includes Thomas Johannes Mayer, Andrea Rost, Danielle de Niese and Pavol Breslik.
For ticket info, visit La Monnaie.
Photo courtesy of Mobil Kamera, via Flickr