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Opera "The Madmans Garden"
First Faroese Opera on Stage
“Boy meets girl”. But this time in an unusual setting. Both on stage and outside. For the first time ever, we have the opportunity to experience Faroese opera. Based on a short story by famous Faroese writer, William Heinesen, the Faroese composer, Sunleif Rasmussen, and Faroese librettist, Dánial Hoydal, have created an opera that tells the story about how the boy, Marselius, meets the girl, Stella Kristina, in a madman’s garden.
The mysterious madman is the central character in the story even though he is almost totally inactive. But the entire story evolves around him and the young couple’s perception of him. Is he mad? What is his background? Does he have supernatural powers? Does he even exist? These questions become essential to the young couple, and in their quest to answer them, they define themselves and their relationship. We follow their development, fantasies and struggle to cope with the mystery of life, adolescence and love, staged in the gloomy shadow of the madman and his seductive garden.
Commissioned in 2001 by the classical ensemble, Aldubáran, and produced as a joint production between The Nordic House and The National Stage of The Faroe Islands, the opera has been on its way for a long time. This is an enormous undertaking for a country populated by fewer than 50,000 people. But because of this very fact, it is with pride that the islanders now invite audience and media around the world to witness this historic event.
The Madman’s Garden is a chamber opera performed by an ensemble of 15 musicians, two actors, three singers, and two dancers. The performers are from the Nordic countries and the Faroe Islands. The singers are from Åland, Iceland, and Denmark. The dancers are from Sweden. The musicians are Faroese and Danish, and the conductor is Icelandic but lives in the Faroe Islands.
 On stage the setup is also rather unusual compared with traditional opera. In stead of using opera singers as actors, the roles of Marselius and Stella Kristina are played by traditional actors. The tenor and soprano, however, are attached to these two as a kind of alter ego or inner voice. They do not have traditional arias but sing mostly just words and phrases.
In connection with the opera a special education programme has been made for students at the age of 14-18 – precisely the same age as the two characters in the opera. A large part of students at this age take part in the programme and will also be given the opportunity to hear lectures, attend rehearsals and finally experience the opera at special performances exclusively for youth. This cooperation between dramatic art and education is quite unique in the Faroe Islands.
An English version of the libretto is available. A printed version can be purchased in The Nordic House www.nlh.fo or on the official site: www.themadmansgarden.com
Musicians and guestmusicians(*):
1. violin Rúni Bæk
2. violin Sámal Petersen
Viola Jens Balslev*
Cello Johan Krarup*
Doublebass Jesper Egelund*
Flute Andrea Heindriksdóttir
Obo Anna Maria Lange*
Clarinet Anna E. Klett
Bassoon Christina Andersen
Horn Páll Sólstein
Trumpet Jóhan Hentze*
Trombone Andras Olsen
Guitar/El.guitar Ólavur Jakobsen
Keyboards Jóhannes Andreasen
Percussion Matias Seibæk*
Conductor: Bernharður Wilkinson |
