Mecklenburg State Theater Schwerin: Strandrecht

Ethel Smyth's Strandrecht tells the story of a community whose unity is torn apart by conflicting moral concepts, peer pressure, fear and love. She paints a precise picture of a tragic social and interest conflict that ultimately costs the lives of two people. Smyth's far too rarely performed third opera is an insider tip among opera lovers.

A small fishing village in Cornwall, very close to a steep rocky coast. The poor, God-fearing villagers live off what the sea gives them. But as their living situation becomes increasingly precarious, they start to help out: On stormy nights, they put out the fire in the lighthouse to make approaching ships run aground. They murder the crew and plunder the flotsam - thus securing a seemingly reliable source of income. But for some time now, the shipwrecks have stopped. The villagers sense a traitor among them, who secretly lights beacons to warn the ships approaching the coast. Resistance to the brutal practice is mounting - and calls into question all the principles of coexistence in the village community.
The opera Standrecht is now being performed in Schwerin for the first time, in a visually stunning and atmospheric production by Daniela Kerck, who is making her debut in Schwerin with this production.