Christoph Willibald Gluck was one of the three greatest opera composers of the 18th Century.
His most famous work is his operatic retelling of the Greek myth Orpheus and Euridice. Seattle Opera will be presenting the French version,
Orphee et Euridice, which features a tenor in the role of Orpheus rather than a mezzo-soprano as in the Italian version. This splendid operatic masterpiece has not been presented in Seattle in more than 20 years.
Join opera lecturer, Norm Hollingshead, for a talk on what makes this opera so special. The talk is at the Redmond Library on Monday, February 6th at 7pm. Mr. Hollingshead is an engaging speaker, who illustrate his commentary with recorded music excerpts.
The talk will also be given at the following KCLS locations:
| Monday, January 30th, 7pm | Kirkland Library |
| Tuesday, February 21st, 7pm | Issaquah Library |
| Wednesday, February 22nd, 7pm | Mercer Island Library |
Orphee et Euridice
This sumptuous and exhilarating account of the legendary Greek hero’s descent into the underworld to rescue his true love changed the course of musical storytelling forever. With its perfectly crafted libretto and generous helping of exceptional music
— evocative choral passages, imaginative ballets, dramatic duets, and the hero’s famous lament
— Orphee et Euridice conveys a timeless message of love’s power to triumph over all.
Seattle Opera performs Orphee et Euridice six times from February 25th through March 10th.
The Seattle Opera sets for Orphee have the challenge that they must portray two worlds: above-ground earth and the underworld. Go behind-the-scenes as the Scene Shop builds an 800 pound tree — both its above ground earthly stature and its unruly underworld root system. Here’s a video that shows a behind-the-scenes tour of building the sets:
