Hans Krása
Children?s opera in two acts.
Libretto by Adolf Hoffmeister.
Clandestine premiere in a Jewish orphanage in Prague in 1942.
Brundibár! His name hums and buzzes, like the music that springs from the mechanical innards of his barrel organ when he cranks the handle. With his waltzes and songs, he entertains passers-by and reigns supreme in the market square. There's no question of anyone stealing his thunder, or his livelihood. He has no pity for anyone, least of all those two little beggars, Pepícek and Aninka, who dared to venture onto his turf. No matter how desperately they need to buy fresh milk for their sick mother, Brundibár shouts at them, chases them away and threatens them. Fortunately, the two children can count on the help of a dog, a cat and a sparrow. In the face of injustice and adversity, unity is strength!
Hans Krása was a brilliant figure on the Czech music scene when the Second World War broke out. Influenced by Mahler, Schönberg and Zemlinsky, he was considered a degenerate musician by the Nazis, and his works were banned. In 1942, he was interned at the "model" Theresienstadt camp, used for propaganda purposes to deny the ongoing genocide. There, with young prisoners, he organized performances of a chamber opera for children composed in 1938 to a libretto inspired by the Grimm brothers? fairy tales - all of which were deported and murdered at Auschwitz. A bubble of hope born in the hell of the concentration camp, Brundibár is performed here in French by children from the Maîtrise de l?Opéra national du Rhin and the classes à horaires aménagés musique, in Jeanne Candel?s poetic and mischievous theatrical universe.
In French.
Running time: 1h without intermission.
Recommended for ages 6 and up.
The Fondation d'entreprise Société Générale is principal sponsor of Opéra Studio. With the support of SOCOMEC.