Opera School Meeting 2019

1. Baden-Württemberg Opera School Meeting on June 16-23, 2019

The fascination of opera - for one week, it could be experienced in Stuttgart in a particularly intense way. All summer productions of the five Baden-Württemberg music colleges were performed at the Wilhelma Theater - a wide range from Baroque to classical modernism, from pasticcio to world premiere, from intimate chamber play to digital multimedia theater.

In addition, there was an outstanding master class program in the premises of the HMDK - by singing personalities such as Angela Denoke, Barbara Frittoli, Doris Soffel, Natale de Carolis and Rainer Trost to the conductors Dan Ettinger and Cornelius Meister, the operetta specialist Adam Benzwi, and the director and designated director of the Theater an der Wien Stefan Herheim.

The entire program - supplemented by panel discussions and lectures with leaders such as Dominique Meyer, the director of the Vienna State Opera, as well as experts shaping the current opera scene - demonstrated the high standard of artistic education in Baden-Württemberg, provided a lively forum for the importance of scenic-musical creation, and presented groundbreaking perspectives on how we can perceive and experience opera today.

Stefan Herheim led a three-day scenic master class on Mozart's Le nozze di Figaro. The young Russian director Vasily Barkhatov worked on scenes from Eugen Onegin with students. Adam Benzwi (Komische Oper Berlin) and Dr. Kevin Clarke (Operetta Research Center Amsterdam) focused on the genre of operetta. Dominique Meyer, director of the Vienna State Opera, shed light on the latest developments in international opera operations. Dan Ettinger (Chief Conductor of the Stuttgart Philharmonic) and GMD Cornelius Meister (State Opera Stuttgart) worked on demanding opera ensembles. Josef E. Köpplinger (Intendant of the Staatstheater am Gärtnerplatz Munich) discussed with Stefan Herheim (designated director of the Theater an der Wien) and Erich Seitter (Casting Consultant, Vienna) on the topic: Singers in 21st century music theater operations: star cult, ensemble spirit, necessity. Prof. Angelika Luz (HMDK Stuttgart) presented a contemporary music theater work. Masterclasses with Angela Denoke, Doris Soffel, Barbara Frittoli, Natale de Carolis, and Rainer Trost brought the students to the highest technical and interpretative standards.

The Opera School Meeting was under the patronage of Prime Minister Winfried Kretschmann.

Performances at the Wilhelma Theater were:

Sun, 06/16/2019, 5 pm
Elegy for Young Lovers by Hans Werner Henze, Opera School of HMDK Stuttgart

Tue, 06/18/2019, 7 pm
"Look at me!" Music theater. World premiere. A coproduction of Theater Freiburg, Hochschule für Musik Freiburg and Akademie für Darstellende Kunst Baden-Württemberg in cooperation with ABK Stuttgart.

Thu, 06/20/2019, 7 pm
Reigen by Philippe Boesmans, State University of Music and Performing Arts Mannheim.

Sat, 06/22/2019, 7 pm
The Turn of the Screw by Benjamin Britten, University of Music Karlsruhe.

Sun, 06/23/2019, 7 pm
In stile rappresentativo. A Monteverdi Pasticcio, State University of Music Trossingen.

At the House of History:
Fri, 06/21/2019, 6 pm
Wind and Hunger Music theater evening, Studio for Vocal Art and New Music Theater Stuttgart.