Organization

Admin

Conductor

Igor Andreev

Singer

Tenor

Ian Sherwood

Simon

Stage director

Mira Alkhovik

Baritone

Félix Le Gloahec

Barabbas

Soprano

Mary

Andrei Maksimov

Decimus

Oscar Rey

Jesus

Anna Beatriz Gomes

Lucia

Bass

Gabriel De Jesus

Pilate

Libretto

Vladimir Alkhovik

Helen Daniels

Mezzo-soprano

Alexandra Lewis

Claudia

Pianist

Yuan Ai Li

Orchestra

HKB Chamber Orchestra

Swiss Opera Studio

English

Biel

Switzerland

Volkshaus Biel

Barabbas: Barabbas Andrei Maksimov

Public

Private

Approved

Barabbas: Barabbas

Barabbas follows the well-known story of a people’s resistance against Pilate’s invasion of Jerusalem. Yet when Barabbas is due to be sentenced to death, his life is saved by another.

This new opera wrestles with revolution, sacrifice, love and conflict and reminds us how stories from centuries ago can have as much meaning now as they did then.


Preparations for the play have been underway since December 2022, when the first musical rehearsals began. At the same time, the concept of the production was born, based on the division of the stage by a black cloth as a symbol of reversible exclusion. Here's what director Mira Alkhovik says about her staging solution:

"I thought for a long time about how to render this inner conflict of national enmity in a way that would be understandable to a modern audience. That is how the concept for our production was born.Barabbas is a story that has no reference to nationalities. It is a story about people who are trying to find a place in this world and express themselves in every possible way. But what these people really have in common is a sense of loneliness. They talk about freedom and happiness, but they don't know where to find it.

Yet at the end of the play comes someone who can explain that what matters most is themselves, without masks, prejudices and attitudes.
Human life is the greatest value. You just have to see this value in every person you meet on your way."

Performance credits (Cast & Crew )

Cast

Crew

Ensemble