Jacques Offenbach's rediscovered opera "Rhine Nymphs" was premiere in Slovenia on 13 January in a historic production put on stage for the first time after this great Romantic opera was written and staged 140 years ago.
The opera is produced by the Ljubljana Opera and Ballet House in collaboration with the the Slovenian arts centre Cankarjev dom and Festspielhaus from Austria's St. Poelten.
The only time the opera was put on stage was in 1864 in the imperial opera house in Austria's Vienna. While praised by some critics at the time, the pro-Wagnerian critics tried to denigrate "Rhine Nymphs", written by the German-born French composer of Jewish descent.
Bad reviews, coupled with the rise in anti-Semitism, should be blamed for the opera being forgotten for such a long period. Nevertheless, its music, spontaneous and dramatic, sounds surprisingly contemporary.
Set in the backdrop of the peasants' uprisings in Germany in 1525 and the fairy world, "Rhine Nymphs" is a story about unrequited love and death as human destiny, yet at the same time a hymn to pacifism.
The director of the Ljubljana production, Manfred Schweigkofler of Italy's Bolzano Theatre, told the press in the Slovenian capital before the premiere that the theme of the opera is actually "incredibly topical because it speaks about how to find freedom during war".
The producers of the latest staging of "Rhine Nymphs" have promised an unprecedented extravaganza, with over 200 costumes designed by one of the leading Slovenian theatre costume designers, Alan Hranitelj.
The production is conducted by Dieter Rossberg of Germany and Igor Svara of the Ljubljana Opera House, with Sandor Roman from Budapest as its choreographer.
Eight re-runs are scheduled until 26 January at the arts centre Cankarjev dom. Moreover, the opera will travel to Switzerland's Winterthur in February and Austria's St. Poelten in April.
The production will cost SIT 109m (EUR 454,600), which is, according to Cankarjev dom manager Mitja Rotovnik, much more than either Cankarjev dom or the Ljubljana Opera House, or the state, could afford.
The Slovenian capital, however, seems not to be the only stage of the rediscovered opera. According to publisher Boosey & Hawkes, the Ljubljana Opera and Ballet House said, "Rhine Nymphs" will also be put on stage in two German cities, Cologne and Trier.
While Jacques Offenbach (1819-1880) is most famous for his opera "Les Contes d'Hoffmann", he actually wrote more than 650 chamber, symphonic and sacral pieces of music plus concerts.
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