Admin

Organization

Singer

Baritone

Michael Mayes

Emperor Overall

Bass-baritone

Kevin Burdette

The Death

Tenor

Alek Shrader

Harlequin

Mezzo-soprano

Daniela Mack

Drummer Girl

Soprano

Jasmine Habersham

A maiden

Calvin Griffin

The Loudspeaker

Brian Vu

A soldier

Conductor

Clinton Smith

Stage director

Tomer Zvulun

Set designer

Julia Noulin-Mérat

Costume designer

Joanna Schmink

Lighting designer

Ben Rawson

Nathan Munson

The Atlanta Opera

German

Der Kaiser von Atlantis -  (The Emperor of Atlantis)

Atlanta

United States

Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre

The circus is abandoned, and artists are shells of their former selves. The dictator Emperor Overall reigns and declares total war. Death refuses to take another soul.

Der Kaiser von Atlantis Ullmann

Public

The Emperor of Atlantis

English

Approved

UNE 2019 | WOLF TRAP OPERA

This Wolf Trap Opera premiere and new production was presented at The Barns at Wolf Trap in June 2019. Special thanks to Dan and Gayle D’Aniello, 2019 Wolf Trap Opera Season Underwriters, and Ed and Andy Smith, 2019 Performance Sponsors.

Please turn on closed captioning to view English subtitles.

THE EMPEROR OF ATLANTIS
Music by Viktor Ullmann
Libretto by Peter Kien

A mad emperor declares universal war against everyone and offends Death. The result is a chaotic world in which the living no longer laugh, the dying no longer die, and life and death have lost their meaning. This daring satire was written while Ullmann was interned in the Nazis’ Terezín ghetto and examines the arrogance of unstoppable power and humanity’s resilience. This controversial and brilliant opera is full of humor and poignancy, with music that ranges from blues and German folk tunes to a Bach chorale.

CAST IN ORDER OF VOCAL APPEARANCE
Emperor Overall - Ben Edquist
Death - Anthony Robin Schneider
Harlekin - Joshua Blue
Loudspeaker - Daniel Noyola
Drummer - Megan Esther Grey
Soldier - Victor Cardamone*
Girl with the Bobbed-Hair - Shannon Jennings
*Studio Artist

CREATIVE TEAM
Conductor - Geoffrey McDonald 
Director - Richard Gammon
Choreographer – Elizabeth Coker 
Scenic Designer - Julia Noulin-Mérat 
Costume Designer - Jonathan Knipscher 
Lighting Designer - Robert H. Grimes
Wig & Makeup Designer – Anne Nesmith

MUSIC AND PRODUCTION STAFF
Cover Conductor – Andrew Crooks
Musical Preparation - Andrew Crooks, James Maverick
Assistant Director - kt shorb
Production Stage Manager - Madeline Levy
Assistant Stage Manager - Savannah Valigura
Supertitle Coordinator - Thomas Morris

Make-Up Provided By M•A•C

Opera streaming video presentations are made possible with support from the Lincoln and Therese Filene Foundation.

For more information on WTO’s video streaming initiative, visit wolftrap.org/opera/for-audiences/video-streaming.

The circus is abandoned, and artists are shells of their former selves. The dictator Emperor Overall reigns and declares total war. Death refuses to take another soul

Viktor Ullmann’s now critically acclaimed chamber opera The Kaiser of Atlantis was written in 1943 in the Theresienstadt concentration camp. Before his death at Auschwitz, Ullmann gave the score to a colleague, and the opera remained unperformed until 1975.

A haunting allegory about redemption despite the worst of humanity, this new production of The Kaiser of Atlantis features The Atlanta Opera Company Players in a chilling satire built for our time.

The Emperor of Atlantis by Ullmann, From (2020/2020), Directed by Tomer Zvulun,, Conductor Clinton Smith, Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre, Atlanta, United States

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