Sydney Chamber Opera / Umsagnir

Sydney Chamber Opera’s Biographica opens on Renaissance physician and mathematician Gerolamo Cardano plotting the day of his death on an astrological chart, a death knell of gongs and drums accompanying his calculations. A colourful genius in a time when science and mysticism were intrinsically interwoven, Cardano wrote treatises on medicine, mathematics, games of chance – including how to cheat at them – and dreams. It is his life and writings that inspired Australian composer Mary Finsterer’s first opera, with a libretto by Tom Wright, receiving its world premiere at Carriageworks as part of this year’s Sydney Festival.