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Austrian Premiere

Music: Manfred Trojahn

Libretto: Manfred Trojahn, incorporating three poems by Rainer Maria Rilke from Sonnets to Orpheus

In his opera Eurydice – Die Liebenden, blind, first premiered in 2021, Manfred Trojahn explores a timeless question: can love overcome death? Drawing inspiration from the Greek myth and the poetic reflections of *Rainer Maria Rilke’s Sonnets to Orpheus, Trojahn creates a psychological drama of the soul, musically rooted in the rich spectrum of modern tonality.

The score opens up a world of sensuality, expressive power, and formal variety, capturing the existential tension between life and death, art and transience. At its center stands the actress Eurydice, embarking on her final journey – one that leads inward, toward new encounters and familiar companions from the past. Along the way, she meets the young musician Orphée, who falls passionately in love with her. Yet Pluton, god of the underworld and embodiment of past loves, remains ever-present.

As Orphée tries to rekindle Eurydice’s feelings and believes he can bring new meaning to her life, Eurydice ultimately crosses the threshold to “the other side.” There, she finds a form of fulfillment that perhaps no longer depends on earthly attachment. Her love for Orphée becomes a metaphor for the bond between art and inspiration – fleeting, profound, and beyond human possession.

The German composer, conductor, and essayist Manfred Trojahn (born 1949) has secured a prominent place in contemporary opera with his exceptional works. Through refined musical structures and a distinctly narrative approach, Trojahn’s music becomes the living voice of his characters and their emotions.

Performances:

October 16, 18, 21 & 22, 2025, at 7:00 p.m.

Venue: Halle E, MuseumsQuartier Vienna, Museumsplatz 1, 1070 Vienna

Musical Director: Walter Kobéra

Stage Direction: Juana Inés Cano Restrepo

Set & Costume Design: Dietlind Konold

Lighting Design: Norbert Chmel

Cast:

Eurydice – Laure-Catherine Beyers

Proserpine – Lena Belkina

Orphée – Martin Achrainer

Pluton – Christoph Gerhardus

Madrigalists of the Vienna Chamber Choir (chorus master: Bernhard Jaretz)

Tonkünstler Orchestra of Lower AustriaAustrian Premiere

© Armin Bardel