Name: Silence, The King Is Listening
Start: 2022-10-29T00:00:00.000Z
End: 2022-11-13T00:00:00.000Z
Location: Greek National Opera

Organization

Singer

Dimitris Nalbantis

Soloists

Vassia Zacharopoulou

Stage director

Theo Abazis

Lighting designer

Nikos Sotiropoulos

Set designer

Kenny McLellan

Associate Director

Eleana Tsichli

Transcription for small ensemble

Kharálampos Goyós

Costume designer

Pavlos Pantazopoulos

Greek National Opera

Others

5-member instrumental ensemble

Silence, The King Is Listening

Athens

Greece

Alternative Stage

SNFCC

Main Stage

Silence, The King Is Listening Kypourgos

Public

Approved

Stavros Niarchos Hall

Accordionist

Instrumentalist

Archlutenist

Baroque Flutist

Baroque Oboist

Baroque Trumpetist

Bassist

Bassoonist

Cellist

Clarinetist

Contrabassist

Cornettist

Flutist

Guitarist

Harper

Harpsichordist

Hornist

Lutenist

Mandoline Player

Musette de cour Player

Oboist

Organist

Percussionist

Pianist

Recorder Player

Saxophonist

Tenor Violinist

Timpani

Trombonist

Trumpeter

Tuba Player

Vibraphonist

Viola Pomposa Player

Viola da gamba

Viola d’amore Player

Violinist

Violino Piccolo Player

Violist

Actor

Broadcasting

Chefdirigent Musiktheater

Choir

Choreographer

Chorus Director

Chorus master

Composer

Conductor

Dancer

Dramaturge

Executive producer

Extra

Hairstylist

Illustrator

Librettist

Makeup artist

Orchestra

Orchestra Operations

Other

Photographer

Poet

Repetiteur

Sound designer

Stage Manager

Teacher

Translator

Video designer

Vocal coach

Wig & Makeup Designer

Writer

Writing and performance

Baritone

Countertenor

Contralto

Soprano

Bass-baritone

Mezzo-soprano

Tenor

Bass

Alto

Child vocalist

Continuo

Silent

Spoken

Μουσικό θέατρο για παιδιά και νέουςΝίκος ΚυπουργόςΣιωπή, ο βασιλιάς ακούει29 Οκτωβρίου έως 13 Νοεμβρίου 2022Πρωινές παραστάσεις – Ώρα έναρξης: 11.00(30/10 & ...

After its successful tour in six Greek cities, Nikos Kypourgos’ and Thomas Moschopoulos’ sparkling musical Silence, the King Is Listening, one of the most popular works of contemporary Greek music theatre, returns to the GNO Alternative Stage to captivate the public with its humour, poetic vein and subversive spirit.

Inspired by Hans Christian Andersen’s fairy tale The Emperor’s New Clothes, the work is presented in the inventive staging by Theo Abazis, well-known for a series of productions that inseparably fuse the musical and theatrical element, and cast with a resplendent cast of opera stars accompanied by a 5-member instrumental ensemble. The themes, entertaining acting and extremely direct musical language help transmit the fundamentals of music even to uninitiated audiences, in the guise of a game.

Deftly poised between operatic traditionalism and playful postmodernism, Silence, the King Is Listening tells the story of a music-loving, though intolerable king who is never satisfied, no matter what pieces of music his court musician plays. The musician is roused from his despair by the Muse, who seizes the opportunity to return to a job she had not practised since the glorious eras of Schubert, Mozart and Bach. She enlists the help of the seven notes of the musical scale, inspiring the musician to write a wonderful piece – which once again fails to satisfy the king! It’s time, therefore, for the imagination to give (as always!) a solution…

 

Once upon a time…

The music king is never satisfied, no matter what pieces of music his court musician plays. The musician is roused from his despair by the Muse, who seizes the opportunity to return to a job she had not practised since the glorious eras of Schubert, Mozart and Bach. She enlists the help of the seven notes of the musical scale, inspiring the musician to write a wonderful piece – which once again fails to satisfy the king! It’s time, therefore, for the imagination to give (as always!) a solution… The Muse thinks of something new: She goes to the king disguised as a famous musician from abroad, whose music can supposedly be heard only by those who have a really good taste in music and knowledge of it. Understandably, neither the king nor his courtiers dare admit that the “masterpiece” presented to them by the Muse, in reality,  is nothing but a….

The work’s music is by distinguished composer Nikos Kypourgos. “In 1993 the newly-established Athens Concert Hall – Megaron commissioned George Kouroupos and me to compose, each one of us, a little musical. It was Thodoros Antoniou’s idea.  He would conduct them himself with the ALEA III Orchestra of Boston. But as Antoniou was in the States and I had no information from Megaron, I heard that I was going to write the work from the newspapers. First reaction: Stress. How would I make it in time? Could I avoid it by saying: “I can’t make it in time, you should have notified me earlier, how could you take it for granted that I would accept”? (This is how two out of the four persons commissioned reacted). Second reaction: “There’s an ideal chance to throw myself into work for a genre I have always dreamt of getting involved in! Third reaction: “Perhaps I can combine the first two with a satire of the so-called “serious” music, the seemingly serious contemporary music, the Megaron itself in the end, with references to the process of commissioning and inspiration, and with a lot of self-sarcastic undertones?” Fourth reaction: I returned to the second reaction.  I took a piece of paper and a pen (I still had no computer). The audience and the press reserved a very warm reception for the two new works, Kouroupos’ Little Red Riding Hood and mine. Those in charge also reacted enthusiastically and promised to repeat the successful evening that “only a few people managed to attend”. However, the works were not performed again. Fortunately, Antoniou recorded them in studio with his orchestra and a while later they were released in an album, which however passed almost unnoticed. The revival of Silence, the King Is Listening was made possible thanks to Kharálampos Goyós, who listened to the album 25 years later, transcribed it for five instruments and presented it at BIOS with the company “The Beggars’ Operas”.  I would like to note that Silence, the King Is Listening is not a work written for children. Only after its completion, some saw in it an educational character that makes it appropriate for children too.   Therefore,  in a way,  what I’ve always believed became apparent: that the boundaries between works for adults and works for children are never too clear or too discernible.”, notes Nikos Kypourgos.

Theo Abazis, an important creator who combines contemporary theatrical language with music in an inseparable blend, returns to the GNO Alternative Stage after the great success of the children’s performance Prince Ivan and the Firebird (October 201 – January 2018), stamping his mark on a fascinating production with plenty of humour, enticing melodies and impressive sets and costumes.

English

Silence, The King Is Listening by Kypourgos, S 05 nov 2022, No (2022/2022), Režisēja Theo Abazis,, Greek National Opera, Athens, Greece

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