Jacques Offenbach’s “Orpheus in the Underworld” in the version of the Pramtal summer operetta takes us on a wild journey through time: the ancient myth becomes a psychedelic trip that takes place in a high school in the wild 1980s. Orpheus teaches as a music professor, his wife Eurydice is bored at home as a housewife. She does not get into the underworld, as in the myth, through a snake bite, but through a drug intoxication – and the horror of her loss is kept within manageable limits in the operetta Orpheus …
“We see operetta as a socially critical format, closer to cabaret than to opera,” says artistic director Harald Wurmsdobler about Claus Frankl’s Innviertler version of “Orpheus in the Underworld”, which will be performed eight times from June 10 at Zell an der Pram Castle (in good weather in the inner courtyard, in bad weather in the Kultursaal). The actual main character is Eurydice, who emancipates herself from the role of the staid wife, says director Manuela Kloibmüller: “At the same time, we want to explore the abysses of the human soul with a lot of humor.”
Among others, George Kounoupias (Orpheus), Beate Korntner (Eurydice), Christa Ratzenböck (Public Opinion) will be there this year. Intendant Wurmsdobler plays Mercury, production manager Michael Zallinger plays Bacchus. The sINNfonietta can be heard as an orchestra under the direction of Gerald Karl. The ensemble of professional musicians from the Innviertel and Bavaria was the reason for the start of the summer operetta ten years ago: the orchestra, which was new at the time, was looking for opportunities to perform. In the meantime, the Pramtal operetta has blossomed into a festival known for its cheerful but accurate productions. In the previous year, 2,600 visitors came and the occupancy rate was 97 percent. Of the almost 100,000 euros budget, 70 percent is generated through ticket sales.
“Orpheus in the Underworld” will be shown on June 10, 16, 17, 23, 24 at 7:30 p.m. and on June 11, 18, 25 at 6:30 p.m. at Schloss Zell/Pram. Discount for OÖNcard owners. Information is available at sommeroperette.at.
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I am an author and journalist who has worked in the entertainment industry for over a decade. I currently work as a news editor at a major news website, and my focus is on covering the latest trends in entertainment. I also write occasional pieces for other outlets, and have authored two books about the entertainment industry.
