Organization

Holland Festival

Dirigat

François-Xavier Roth

Regie

Calixto Bieito

Bühnenbild

Rebecca Ringst

Kostümbild

Ingo Krügler

Lichtgestaltung

Michael Bauer

Videogestaltung

Sarah Derendinger

Sänger

Bass

Kyle Ketelsen

Adahm

Bariton

Leigh Melrose

Kajin

Sopran

Annette Dasch

Chawa

Tenor

John Osborn

Chabel

De Nationale Opera

Orchestra

Concertgebouworkest

Deutsch

Die ersten Menschen -  (Die ersten Menschen, oper in zwei Aufzügen)

Amsterdam

Niederlande

Dutch National Opera & Ballet

Theaterzaal

"An erotic mystery": That's the subtitle of the sole opera composed by Rudi Stephan, The First Humans (1920). The conflict at the heart of the story arises from the idea that the first people on Earth were thrown into a place without morality: emotions and drives dictate their behavior. Only after transgressions do ethics and morality begin to emerge to keep primal drives in check. There are echoes of Otto Weininger's misogynist theory of the sexes, as well as Sigmund Freud's psychoanalysis. Stephan tells the story in an old-testament setting, shortly after the banishment of Adam (hier: Adham) and Eve (here: Chawa) from paradise. It is a work of late romantic excess and expressionist extremes. François-Xavier Roth conducted this revival in June 2021 in Amsterdam, staged by Calixto Bieito, and featuring a first-rate cast.

Videos