Alongside "Romeo and Juliet", the story of "Orpheus and Eurydice" is probably the most famous, but also the most tragic love story in world literature. This ancient myth about the power of love and the magic of art has inspired composers and poets to reinterpret it time and again right up to the present day.
The myth of Orpheus and Eurydice belongs in the universe of fantasy, where the boundary between the visible and dream images becomes blurred. In "Orpheus or The Language of Love", songs about love and passion can be heard as well as about loneliness and the finiteness of life. The story of Orpheus and Eurydice is retold by the young director Sebastian Schimböck, expanded with existential texts and brought to the stage with melancholy to rock songs and atmospheric sounds and images.
He was given a lyre by Apollo, the god of music. Orpheus was considered the best of all singers and could make gods and goddesses, humans and even animals, plants and stones cry. The trees listened to him enthusiastically and the wild animals became peaceful when he played his little harp. His singing softened rocks and he was even able to conquer the raging sea with his singing. When Orpheus' wife Eurydice died from a snake bite, he followed her to the underworld. Through his singing, he wanted to persuade Hades, the god of the underworld, to give him back his beloved wife. His art was so overwhelming that even the hellhound Kerberos stopped barking. His request for the return of his great love was granted on one condition: he was not allowed to look around for Eurydice when he ascended to the earthly world.
Premiere February 23, 2024
Further performances: March 16, April 4, 5 and 17, 2024
