23. 11. 2024, 7 p.m.
Janáček Theatre
Author: Antonín Dvořák
Conductor: Marko Ivanović
Director: David Radok
Ensemble:Janáček Opera of the National Theatre Brno
Part 1
Rusalka wants to leave the world in which she lives with the water sprite Vodnik and the witch Ježibaba. She longs for an ideal world and an ideal love. Vodnik warns her, but when he sees that his warnings are futile, he sends her to see Ježibaba. She promises help, but the price is high.
The Prince meets Rusalka. Rusalka’s naturalness, contrasting with his own world, captivates him and he takes her to his castle. Preparations for the wedding of the Prince and Rusalka are in full swing. Among the guests is a Foreign princess seeking the favour of the Prince. He succumbs to her provocativeness and sensuality, so different from Rusalka. Desperate Rusalka seeks help from Vodnik. He encourages her to fight, but it is too late. The prince has fallen completely under the spell of the princess.
Part 2
Rusalka has returned to her world devoid of hope and disillusioned. Ježibaba offers her a way out, but she must kill the one who let her down. Rusalka refuses. As he comes to the end of his life, the Prince realises that he has lost his true love. He tries to win her back. They meet again, but there are things that cannot be undone…
Director: David Radok
Conductor: Marko Ivanović
Musical staging: Marko Ivanović
Scene: David Radok
Costumes: Zuzana Ježková
Lighting design: Přemysl Janda
Choreography: Andrea Miltnerová
Assistant Director: Patricie Částková
Choirmaster: Pavel Koňárek
Cast:
Rusalka – Jana Šrejma Kačírková
Prince – Peter Berger
Water Goblin – Jan Šťáva
The Foreign Princess – Eliška Gattringerová
Witch – Václava Krejčí Housková
First Wood Sprite – Doubravka Součková
Second Wood Sprite – Ivana Pavlů
Third Wood Sprite – Monika Jägerová
Hunter – Tadeáš Hoza
Antonín Dvořák was one of Leoš Janáček’s mentors and friends, and his music and advice had a great influence on the younger composer. Dvořák’s Rusalka was written at the time when Janáček was working on the first version of his famous opera Jenůfa and the festival will offer a unique opportunity to hear and see these two operas side by side in both cases in extraordinary projects; the director of Rusalka will be one of the best Czech directors David Radok, who has been cooperating with the Janáček Opera of the National Theatre Brno for a long time, in an already proven tandem with Marko Ivanović as the author of the musical staging.
Human soul, pure human soul! The water nymph Rusalka longs for life above the water, for love and a human soul. The witch knows the way, but the price is high – Rusalka loses her ability to speak, but what good is speech when for her beloved prince she is just a wave on the water… The world of men, however, turns out to be cruel and full of betrayal, over which even her pure love cannot prevail. Rusalka offers the stagers countless possibilities of interpretation, and David Radok has taken the path of a fateful drama about unfulfilled desires and human failure, about the contradictory conflict between love and erotic desire, a drama about the sinful human soul and about mistakes that can no longer be corrected.
Since its creation in 1900, Dvořák’s Rusalka has been one of the most beloved and most performed Czech operas both at home and abroad, not only thanks to its beautiful music, but also because of the poetic and timeless libretto by Jaroslav Kvapil. The poet found his inspiration in Norse myths and legends about mysterious realms hidden beneath the waves of the sea, as well as in the famous fairy tale by H. Ch. Andersen The Little Mermaid. Kvapil’s unique text contains countless symbols and Antonín Dvořák was inspired by it to create music full of colour and beautiful melodies that extend beyond opera, into the world of symphonic music. The production Rusalka, which was created as part of the Year of Czech Music, will be the second contribution of the Brno ensemble to the festival programme.
Patricie Částková