“Sunken Garden” by Michel van der Aa at The Dallas Opera

Fri, Mar 9 - Sat, Mar 17  2018

On March 9, 11, 14, and 17, Dutch composer Michel van der Aa will direct “Sunken Garden” at The Dallas Opera, Dallas, TX. Dutch designer Theun Mosk will be in charge of the opera’s set and lightening. During that same week, on March 13, Michel van der Aa’s Violin Concerto will have its US premiere at Carnegie Hall, New York, NY, performed by Janine Jansen and the Philadelphia Orchestra.

About “Sunken Garden”

Have you ever had a dream so vivid that it must have been real? Who can say it isn’t? The line of reality finds itself endlessly blurred in “Sunken Garden”, the fourth work of acclaimed Dutch composer Michel van der Aa. A film maker’s obsession with the disappearance of a young girl leads to the discovery of a walled garden, which is the barrier between life and death. But does this place actually exist or is it all simply a stunning piece of imagination? “Sunken Garden” integrates video and 3D technology, immersing the audience into an inescapable world of crime and mystery. This marks the American premiere of “Sunken Garden” and will be a true, one-of-a-kind production.

Team

Director and music – Michel van der Aa

Libretto – David Mitchell

Starring – Roderick Williams, Katherine Manley, Miah Persson

Conductor – Nicole Paiement

Set Designer and Lighting Designer – Theun Mosk

Costume Designer – Astrid Schulz

About Michel van der Aa

Michel van der Aa, winner of the 2015 Johannes Vermeer Award and 2013 Grawemeyer award, is one of today’s most sought-after composers and stage directors. A pioneer in the realms of new music and technology, his staged works – incorporating film and sampled soundtrack – are a seamless hybrid of musical theatre and multimedia. Netherlands-born, van der Aa maintains strong roots in his home country including close ties with the Concertgebouw, Amsterdam. The Concertgebouw Orchestra announced a partnership with van der Aa with the position of “House Composer” which led to the creation of several major works. In 2015-16, Van der Aa created an interactive digital song cycle that was released as a website and smartphone app at the end of May 2015.

About Theun Mosk

Theun Mosk works as scenographer, lighting designer, set designer and theatre-maker. In 2013 Mosk worked as the set and lighting designer on Michel van der Aa’s “Sunken Garden”, and in 2016, Mosk staged a new work of American Composer Huang Ruo in collaboration with ASKOlschönberg ensemble. Last year he made the scenography of “Orivacy” by De Warme Winke, coproduced by Wunderbaum, at HAU in Berlin and Holland Festival 2016. He has a permanent collaboration with de Veenfabriek / Paul Koek. In 2009 they staged the Dutch premiere of “The City” by Martin Crimp, and in 2013 they staged “Moby Dick” with a new script written by Peter Verhelst at the Schauspielhaus Bochum. In February 2018 he worked on “Romeo & Juliet” with Ballet BC Vancouver at the Banff Center.

Agenda

March 9, 7:30pm | The Dallas Opera | Dallas, TX, US

March 11, 2pm | The Dallas Opera | Dallas, TX, US

March 14, 7:30pm | The Dallas Opera | Dallas, TX, US

March 17, 7:30pm | The Dallas Opera | Dallas, TX, US