Christ lag in Todesbanden / The Emperor of Atlantis - English Touring Opera - Linbury Studio, 5 October 2012
ROH2 goodbye and good riddance. While the Royal Opera House themselves rarely come up with anything worthwhile to fill their Linbury stage, English Touring Opera have scored a win, yet again, with a striking and powerful double bill.
Victor Ullmann wrote Der Kaiser von Atlantis in 1944 while incarcerated in the Terezin concentration camp. Bizarrely, the authorities sanctioned and even encouraged cultural activities, though inevitably the idiosyncratic vocal and musical arrangements reflect the limited resources available.They were less keen on Ullmann's subject matter - a despotic Emperor who declares universal war, which provokes Death to go on strike.
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