Komische Oper Berlin 8 March 2020 - If only I was a chicken! | GoComGo.com

If only I was a chicken!

Komische Oper Berlin, Berlin, Germany
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7 PM
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Important Info
Type: Classical Concert
City: Berlin, Germany
Starts at: 19:00
Sung in: German

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Programme
Kurt Weill: If only I was a chicken!
Overview

A Berlin-Evening [2020]

Music by Kurt Weill, Paul Dessau, Peter Kreuder, Theo Mackeben, and others

What do you get when you lock opera star Anne Sofie von Otter and crime scene inspector Wolfram Koch in a room with Adam Benzwi – musical spirit behind the once again thriving Jazz operettas – and director heavyweight Barrie Kosky? An unforgettable, truly authentic Berlin medley!

The Swedish mezzo soprano Anne Sofie von Otter sings at all major opera and concert houses in the world. Following her guest performance with the chansons collection Douce France (Grammy Award 2015) and her role as "the old woman" in Leonard Bernstein’s Candide, the world-class singer will be appearing for the third time at the Komische Oper Berlin. This time she’ll be performing alongside actor Wolfram Koch who achieved cult status as Frankfurt crime scene inspector in the Tatort television series.
"If only I were a chicken!", "I’m Standing in the Rain", and "Don’t Cry forLove" – timeless melodies with absurd, bizarre, matter-of-fact, and romantic lyrics are the trademark of the hits that came out of Berlin in the 1920s and 30s. Kurt Weill, Paul Dessau, Hanns Eisler, Friedrich Hollaender, Peter Kreuder, Theo Mackeben, and Michael Jary – the names of their authors whose fates could not have been more different. While some were persecuted for their ancestry or beliefs, others made arrangements with the fascist regime. All of them, however, have their musical routes in legendarily liberal Berlin. An evening of opposites and contradictions, unresolved and unembellished!

Venue Info

Komische Oper Berlin - Berlin
Location   Behrenstraße 55-57

The Komische Oper Berlin is a German opera company based in Berlin. The company produces opera, operetta and musicals.

The opera house is located on Behrenstraße, just a few steps from Unter den Linden. Since 2004, the Komische Oper Berlin, along with the Berlin State Opera, the Deutsche Oper Berlin, the Berlin State Ballet, and the Bühnenservice Berlin (Stage and Costume Design), has been a member of the Berlin Opera Foundation.

The theatre was built between 1891 and 1892 by architects Ferdinand Fellner and Hermann Helmer for a private society. It first opened on 24 September 1892 as "Theater Unter den Linden" with Adolf Ferron's operetta Daphne and Gaul and Haßreiter's ballet Die Welt in Bild und Tanz.

The theatre was primarily a vehicle for operetta, but was also used for various other events and balls. Around 800 people could be seated in the stalls, and the balconies and various en-suite dinner rooms housed about a further 1,700 seats. Its directors went bankrupt in 1896 and the theatre was forced to close its doors.

On 3 September 1898 the theatre was reopened as Metropol-Theater with Julius Freund's revue Paradies der Frauen. It then grew to become one of Berlin's most famous and successful variety theatres. During the 1920s and early 1930s, it was leased by the brothers Alfred and Fritz Rotter. Under their management, it saw the premieres of two operettas by Franz Lehár - Friederike (opera) in 1928 and Das Land des Lächelns in 1929, both starring Richard Tauber. However, due to a decline of variety and music hall entertainment the theatre was again closed in 1933.

In 1934 the theatre was nationalised and renamed Staatliches Operettentheater. It operated as part of the Nazi Kraft durch Freude entertainment and leisure programmes. During World War II, the auditorium was damaged by Allied bombing on 7 May 1944. The façade, entrance hall, and auditorium ceiling murals were destroyed by bombs on 9 March 1945.

After the war, the theatre was in East Germany, being that the building was in the eastern part of Berlin. Following repair works and provisional rebuilding, the theatre reopened on 23 December 1947, as the Komische Oper with Johann Strauss's operetta Die Fledermaus.

The 1950s saw various further alterations and extensions. The theatre was completely rebuilt in 1965/1966 by Architektenkollektiv Kunz Nierade, adding functional extensions and giving the theatre a completely new exterior. The theatre reopened again on 4 December 1966, with Mozart's Don Giovanni. The auditorium underwent further restoration in 1986, and the stage technology was further modernised by 1989. Today the theatre seats 1,270.

In 1947, Walter Felsenstein founded and led the resident opera company, the Komische Oper, until his death in 1975. Götz Friedrich was an assistant to Felsenstein at the company. Joachim Herz became general director after Felsenstein's death and served until 1981. Subsequently, Harry Kupfer directed the company for 21 seasons, until 2002. The company specializes in German language productions of opera, operetta and musicals. In 2007 the company won, jointly with Oper Bremen, the "Opera house of the year" award by the German magazine Opernwelt. From 2002 to 2012, the company's chief director and Intendant was Andreas Homoki. In June 2008, the company announced the appointment of Barrie Kosky to succeed Homoki as its next Intendant, as of the 2012/2013 season. In October 2014, his contract with the company was extended through 2022. Since 2005, the company's managing director has been Susanne Moser.

From 1966 to 2004, the theatre was also home to a resident ballet company – first as the "Tanztheater der Komischen Oper", and then from 1999 as "BerlinBallett – Komische Oper". In 2004, due to budgetary problems, the separate ballet companies of Berlin's three opera houses were merged into a single company called the Staatsballett Berlin.

Past General Music Directors (GMD) of the company have included Kurt Masur, Rolf Reuter, Yakov Kreizberg, Kirill Petrenko, Carl St.Clair, and Patrick Lange. Since 2012, the GMD of the company is Henrik Nánási. Nánási is scheduled to conclude his tenure at the end of the 2017-2018 season. In May 2017, the company announced the appointment of Ainārs Rubiķis as its next GMD, effective with the 2018-2019 season, with an initial contract of 3 seasons.

Important Info
Type: Classical Concert
City: Berlin, Germany
Starts at: 19:00
Sung in: German
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