HCM City (VNA) - The Ho ChiMinh City Ballet and Symphony Orchestra (HBSO) is due to stage the operetta DieFledermaus (The Bat) by Austrian composer Johann Strauss II at the Opera Houseon December 29 evening.
Die Fledermaus, set in Vienna in the 19thcentury, features Dr Falke’s plan to embarrass his friend Eisenstein who leaveshim at a park after a costume party.
Johann Strauss II finished the work in onemonth and a half. Its libretto was written by German dramatist Karl Haffner andauthor and composer Richard Genée.
The operetta premiered in 1874 at theTheater an der Wien in Vienna.
Since New Year’s Eve of 1900, DieFledermaus has become an integral part of the Vienne State Opera for the NewYear season, and a tradition for many theatres and troupes in the UK,Australia, Lithuania and now Vietnam.
In Vietnam, the operetta premiered duringthe Autumn Melody Festival in August, the biggest event featuring classicalarts forms in HCM City, receiving a warm welcome from critics and local andforeign audiences.
It is being staged by German director DavidHermann, who has overseen numerous classical and modern operas such as TheMarriage of Figaro and The Magic Flute by Mozart, Jeanne d’Arc au bûcher (Joanof Arc at the Stake) by Arthur Honegger and L’heure Espagnole (The SpanishHour) by Maurice Ravel.
The performance will feature South Koreansoprano Cho Hae Ryong, soprano Pham Khanh Ngoc and baritone Dao Mac, togetherwith HBSO’s vocalists, musicians and dancers.
Tran Nhat Minh, who earned a master’sdegree in chorus conducting at Moscow State Tchaikovsky Conservatory in Russia,will conduct the performance.-VNA
VNA