Synopsis

Presented in collaboration with the Orchestra of the Eighteenth Century, the DNOA’s triple bill of works by Haydn and Krenek is an evening of enormously contrasting operas – downright fascinating stories that apparently have nothing to do with each other, yet with an astonishing amount of common ground. Both Haydn and Krenek are musical storytellers par excellence, who are in their element at the intersection of humour and drama.

In Arianna a Naxos , Haydn pushes the boundaries of the dramatic expression of a solo cantata to the limit. With merciless precision, he probes the depths of the emotions of an abandoned woman, who is held captive against her will on an island. How do you keep going when the pain is too overwhelming?

What Price Confidence is an American travel opera by Krenek, full of entertaining coincidences and with a touch of fate. Two couples are followed in a cinematic succession of scenes in the critical phase of their relationship at a dizzying pace. An affair is exciting, but what if the deceived then find the one in each other?

In L’isola disabitata , two sisters are left behind on a deserted island by a cruel twist of fate. Surrounded by wild nature, they managed to survive for thirteen years. The unexpected rescue soon leads to a series of complications. With surprisingly contrasting virtuoso arias and tantalising instrumental solo passages, Haydn takes us on a great adventure. After such a long time in the wilderness, is a return to civilization even possible?