Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk by Shostakovich, Wed 11 Apr 2018, From (2018/2018), Directed by Immo Karaman,, Conductor Kristiina Poska, Stadttheater Klagenfurt, Klagenfurt, Austria

Shostakovich, one of the most dazzling artistic personalities of the 20th century, created an opera that was as captivating as it was wild. Already in Leskov's novella, the murderous activities of Katerina Ismailova are told in unvarnished words, who first kills her father-in-law and then - together with her lover Sergei - her husband. In the end, however, she is dropped by Sergei herself. Immo Karaman is the director and set designer, Fabian Posca is responsible for the choreography and costumes – the two have already brought Die Liebe zu den Drei Orangen and A Midsummer Night's Dream to the stage with great success in Klagenfurt. The Estonian conductor Kristiina Poska conducts the KSO. In keeping with the plot, Shostakovich composes music that is characterized by extremes: transparent chamber drama stands next to powerful choirs, jagged sections of the score next to passages in strict counterpoint. Between the grotesque and the tragedy, Shostakovich's Katerina takes on a dimension that Leskov's story lacks. Surrounded by a weak husband, a rough father-in-law and chauvinistic workers, she ekes out a miserable life on a farm in the Russian countryside. This destructive environment makes her actions understandable, so that she appears not only as a cruel murderess, but also as a young woman striving for self-realization. Duration approx. 3 hours (incl. break after Act 2) Photos (c) Arnold Pöschl