Difference between revisions of "Masque"
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Commissioned by the [[National Arts Council]] and [[Pro Helvetia]]. Premiere: Cape Town, 28.10.2005. | Commissioned by the [[National Arts Council]] and [[Pro Helvetia]]. Premiere: Cape Town, 28.10.2005. | ||
| − | ''[[Masque]]'' combines classical, African and baroque ensembles in its scoring, coupled with a cast of European and African singers and masked dancers to portray arts in a multi-cultural setting. | + | ''[[Masque]]'' combines classical, African and baroque ensembles in its scoring, coupled with a cast of European and African singers and masked dancers to portray arts in a multi-cultural setting. |
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| + | The theme of the opera (based on ''The Origin of Life and Death - African Creation Myths'') revolves around four African masks (The Blind one, the Tired one, the Sad one and Death) placed in a museum that are viewed differently by Western and African people. These masks represent blindness, sleep, sorrow and death, balancing forces sent by God to cure man of his pride. To the Griot (a Mali storyteller) these masks have an emotional attachment and by touching them he brings them to life, thus dispelling the curse that made them lifeless. | ||
==Translations and adaptations== | ==Translations and adaptations== | ||
Revision as of 12:26, 1 March 2025
Masque is an African opera by Hans Huyssen on a libretto by Ilija Trojanow.
Contents
The original text
Commissioned by the National Arts Council and Pro Helvetia. Premiere: Cape Town, 28.10.2005. Masque combines classical, African and baroque ensembles in its scoring, coupled with a cast of European and African singers and masked dancers to portray arts in a multi-cultural setting.
The theme of the opera (based on The Origin of Life and Death - African Creation Myths) revolves around four African masks (The Blind one, the Tired one, the Sad one and Death) placed in a museum that are viewed differently by Western and African people. These masks represent blindness, sleep, sorrow and death, balancing forces sent by God to cure man of his pride. To the Griot (a Mali storyteller) these masks have an emotional attachment and by touching them he brings them to life, thus dispelling the curse that made them lifeless.
Translations and adaptations
Performance history in South Africa
2005: Presented by Cape Town Opera Artscape Theatre (28 October – 5 November)
Sources
Wayne Muller. 2018. A reception history of opera in Cape Town: Tracing the development of a distinctly South African operatic aesthetic (1985–2015). Unpublished PhD thesis.
Ivan Meredith. 2006. 'Opera in South Africa during the first democratic decade'. Unpublished Masters thesis. University of Cape Town.
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