As Orphée mourns the loss of Eurydice, Amour offers him a bargain. If he can win over the Underworld, he will be reunited with his wife on one condition: he must never meet her gaze on their return to Earth. Orphée agrees and descends into the realm of the dead… The myth of Orphée, whose singing moves even the most fearsome creatures of the Underworld to tears, was set to music in French by Christoph Willibald Gluck in 1774. The opera follows the poet’s journey through a series of spectacular and dramatic scenes. The composer brings together instantly memorable arias, extraordinary orchestral colors, and masterful choruses, creating one of his greatest masterpieces. Together with conductor Alphonse Cemin, former Villa Médicis resident Lorraine de Sagazan makes her opera-directing debut after a series of highly acclaimed theater productions. Because proof of love cannot be measured by a heroic act alone, she uses this story to question what seems all too obvious. The story of Orphée and Eurydice has become the quintessential romantic myth in our collective memory. Yet behind this idealization lies another, more complex vision of our relationship with life as a couple. The two roles will be performed by leading French opera stars: the exceptional Sahy Ratia and the charismatic Jenny Daviet, joined by the equally virtuosic Mariamielle Lamagat in the role of Amour. As Orphée mourns the loss of Eurydice, Amour offers him a bargain. If he can win over the Underworld, he will be reunited with his wife on one condition: he must never meet her gaze on their return to Earth. Orphée agrees and descends into the realm of the dead… The myth of Orphée, whose singing moves even the most fearsome creatures of the Underworld to tears, was set to music in French by Christoph Willibald Gluck in 1774. The opera follows the poet’s journey through a series of spectacular and dramatic scenes. The composer brings together instantly memorable arias, extraordinary orchestral colors, and masterful choruses, creating one of his greatest masterpieces. Together with conductor Alphonse Cemin, former Villa Médicis resident Lorraine de Sagazan makes her opera-directing debut after a series of highly acclaimed theater productions. Because proof of love cannot be measured by a heroic act alone, she uses this story to question what seems all too obvious. The story of Orphée and Eurydice has become the quintessential romantic myth in our collective memory. Yet behind this idealization lies another, more complex vision of our relationship with life as a couple. The two roles will be performed by leading French opera stars: the exceptional Sahy Ratia and the charismatic Jenny Daviet, joined by the equally virtuosic Mariamielle Lamagat in the role of Amour.
Source: Nantes Métropole