Organization

Admin

Elbphilharmonie & Laeiszhalle Hamburg

Conductor

Conductor (+2)

Alain Altinoglu

Spoken

Marion Cotillard

Joan of Arc

Stage director (+1)

Eric Génovèse

Brother Dominic

Soprano (+2)

Ilse Eerens

The Virgin

Mezzo-soprano (+4)

Isabelle Druet

Marguerite

Mezzo-soprano (+3)

Svetlana Lifar

Catherine

Tenor (+4)

Julien Dran

Porcus

Une voix ténor

Clerk

1.Herald

Bass (+4)

Nicolas Courjal

2. Herald

Une voix basse

Orchestra

Hr-Sinfonieorchester Frankfurt

Elbphilharmonie

Chorus

Children and youth choir of the Hamburg State Opera

Hamburger Knabenchor St. Nikolai

Wiener Singverein

She is the national heroine of France and one of the most famous women in history: Joan of Arc, also known as the »Maid of Orléans«. Guided by divine inspiration, she was called upon to lead the fight against the English in the 15th century; in the end, she was burned at the stake. This is exactly where the dramatic oratorio »Jeanne d’Arc au bûcher« by Swiss composer Arthur Honegger comes in, with Jeanne reviewing her life in flashbacks just before her death.

Honegger dresses the partly historical, partly fictional scenes in opulent sounds that resemble film music at times, borrowing inspiration from many genres including Baroque and jazz. With the French Oscar winner Marion Cottilard (»La vie en rose«), a real Hollywood star slips into the spoken role of Joan of Arc at the Elbphilharmonie. She will be accompanied by the Frankfurt Radio Symphony under the baton of Frenchman Alain Altinoglu, who has been at the orchestra’s helm since 2021.

Photos