THIS WEEK
InOut | THE CPH POST ENTERTAINMENT GUIDE
5 - 10 January 2012 Carmen
Store Scene, Ekvipagemestervej 10, Cph K; starts Mon, ends 20 March, performances at 19:00 (unless stated) on Mon, Wed, Jan 11, Jan 15, Jan 17, Jan 26, Jan 30, Feb 4 (19:30), Feb 6 (19:30), Feb 8, Feb 10 (15:00), Feb 13, Feb 15, Mar 3(15:00), Mar 6 (19:30), Mar 11 (19:30), Mar 14 (19:30), Mar 20 (19:30); tickets: 125-895kr, www. kglteater.dk, 3369 6969; 225 mins with intermission; sung in French with Danish supertitles IF EVER there was a performance to lift your spirits during the dull, dreary days of January, it is Carmen. Georges Bizet’s classic opera − full of steamy Spanish passion, eroticism, raucous stage scenes and familiar songs that will have you swaying on your haunches − will be the first performance of 2013 at the Copenhagen Opera House and it promises to kick off the new year in spectacular fashion. Written by French composer Bizet with a libretto by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy, Carmen was first performed in Paris in 1875. It’s based on a novel by the same title and tells the story of the downfall of Don José, a naïve soldier who is seduced by the worldly-wise gypsy
Exhibitions
Carmen. José sacrifices everything in a bid to win Carmen’s heart, abandoning his childhood sweetheart and his military career. But when Carmen chooses the glamorous toreador Escamillo instead, José kills her in a jealous rage. With its bawdy working class scenes and themes of lawlessness and immorality, Carmen at first proved controversial, yet not particularly successful. Sadly it was only after Bizet’s death that it began to gain critical acclaim. Today it has become one of the most recognised and well-loved operas performed on stages throughout the world. This particular production by Scottish director David McVicar was originally created for the Glyndebourne Festival where it received rave reviews. It premiered at the Royal Danish Theatre three years ago and now it’s back, this time with Carmen sung by Anna Caterina Antonacci, the celebrated French soprano who has already proved herself in the role at the Royal Opera House in London and at the Opera Comique. Tenor Andrew Richards, who appeared as Don José at La Scala in Milan, takes the role of her besotted pursuer. There’s plenty of Danish talent on show too. Musicians and singers from the Royal Danish Orchestra, the Royal Danish Opera Chorus, the Danish Boys’ Choir and the Danish
Girls’ Choir will be conducted by Vello Pahn and Alexander Prior, while the Tivoli Pantomime Theatre is providing backup dancers, who will be choreographed by Andrew George. The gritty set design – think factory floors and dingy bar scenes – is the work of Michael Vale, and Paule Constable is in charge of lighting, while the magnificent costumes, including Carmen’s cleavage-spilling corsets and Escamillo’s outrageous gold-encrusted bull-fighting get-up, are designed by Sue Blane. The 225-minute performance is sung in French with Danish supertitles, but even the most casual of opera-goers will recognise Bizet’s catchy rhythms and melodic songs. The toreador’s song, ‘Votre toast’ from Act Two, is one of the most popular and best-known of all operatic arias, while Carmen’s ‘Habanera’, based on the idiomatic song ‘El Arreglito’ by Spanish-American composer Sebastian Iradier, is also one of those instantly recognisable tunes that once heard lodges itself in your memory forever. It is the accessibility of this music, the easy to follow plot and the bustling, rowdy group scenes that give Carmen its universal appeal. Given how popular it was the first time around, you’re well advised to book your seats now.
Andy Warhol Early Drawings
Fuzzy Logic
CATHY STRONGMAN
Che Guevara, the young girlfriend, the cigars − but surely he’s too old for a midlife crisis
Morten Stræde, Håkan Bengtsson & Martin Thelander
Fontenay-aux-Roses
Dopeness: Portraits of Urban Culture
Group Exhibition NEW NEW
NEW NEW
OK Corral, Rød Lagerbygning, Malttorvet 2, Cph V; starts Jan 7, ends Jan 17; open Mon-Fri 12:00-18:00, Sat-Sun 12:00-16:00; www.ok-c.org A new art gallery in Vesterbro’s closed Carlsberg beer factory area presents a group exhibition with several emerging artists. Jonas Olesen, Sandra Boss, Tanja Schlander, and Søren Raagard are among the featured artists. BF
Væggen
Dronning Louises Bro, Cph N; ends Sep; open Mon-Sun 07:00-22:00; www.copenhagen.dk Væggen (The Wall) shows archival pictures from Copenhagen’s history. BF
The Critic
Galleri Nicolai Wallner, Ny Carlsberg Vej 68, Cph V; ends Jan 20; open Tue-Fri 12:00-17:00, Sat 12:00-15:00; www.nicolaiwallner.com Elmgreen & Dragset work with issues of gay identity, performance, and the influence of economics and culture in public art. BF
Louisiana Museum of Modern Art, Gl Strandvej 13, Humlebæk; starts Jan 8, ends Feb 21; open Tue-Fri 11:00-22:00; Sat-Sun 11:0018:00; tickets: adults 95kr, students 85kr, under-18s free adm; www.louisiana.dk This special exhibition presents an unusual collection of little known and rarely seen drawings by the celebrated American artist Andy Warhol. The collected works demonstrate Warhol’s early artistic exploration, foreshadowing what would become Warhol’s signature pop art style. Two hundred of the artist’s minimal yet affecting drawings will be shown at the museum. BF
The Eye is the Planet
Hürtig/Kany Gallery, St Kongensgade 76, Cph K; ends Jan 5; open Wed-Fri 14:00-18:00, Sat 11:00-16:00; www.hurtigkany.com Emerging artist Johanne Skovbo Lasgaard presents sculpture and painting in this solo exhibition. Lasgaard is interested in volume, space, and exploring the tactile properties of her materials. BF
Galleri Kant, St. Kongensgade 3, Cph K; started Dec 14, ends Jan 12; open Tue-Fri 12:00-18:00; Sat 11:00-15:00; www.gallerikant.dk Michael Boelt Fischer presents new work in this solo exhibition. The artist works with common industrial materials, dust, and paint to create abstract paintings and sculptures. BF
Richard Deacon
Galleri Susanne Ottesen, Gothersgade 49, Cph K; ends Jan 12; open Tue-Fri 10:0018:00, Sat 11:00-15:00; www. susanneottesen.dk British sculptor Richard Deacon has recently returned from a residency in Singapore where he created pieces combining print media and sculptural forms. BF
Little Shop of Horror
Kunstforeningen Gl Strand, Gammel Strand 48, Cph K; ends Jan 13; open Tue-Sun 11:00-17:00, Wed-Thu 11:0020:00; www.glstrand.dk Camilla Berner will present new work in the Salon at GL Strand. Berner works with sculpture and the environment in her multidisciplinary art practice. BF
Malmö Konsthall, St Johannesgatan 7, Malmö; started Dec 20, ends Jan 20; open Mon-Sun 11:00-17:00, Wed 11:00-21:00; www.konsthall. malmo.se Pablo Pijnappel works with outdated media: Super 8 film and slide projections. Family films and photographs inspire him, and he uses these found images in his collage-like installations. He presents 80 black and white photographic slides focused on the city of Paris for this exhibition. BF
I Am the River
Nikolaj Kunsthal, Nikolaj Plads 10, Cph K; ends Jan 27; open Tue-Sun 12:00-17:00; www.nikolajkunsthal.dk Eva Koch presents a large-scale installation of an Icelandic waterfall built to scale. BF
Animations
Galleri Nicolai Wallner, Ny Carlsberg Vej 68, Cph V; ends Jan 20; open Tue-Fri 12:00-17:00, Sat 12:00-15:00; www.nicolaiwallner.com Scottish artist David Shrigley is known for his naïve drawing style and irreverent sense of humour. BF
Gallery Lars Olsen, Uplandsgade 56, Cph S; ends Jan 9; open Thu-Sat 13:00-18:00; www.gallerilarsolsen.com This group show explores the minimalist inspired-work of the three included artists. Morten Stræde, Håkan Bengtsson and Martin Thelander all work with simple shapes and forms in sculpture and painting. BF
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Statens Museum for Kunst, Sølvgade 48-50, Cph K; ends March 17; open Tue-Sun 10:0017:00, Wed 10:00-20:00; tickets: 95kr, under-25s: 65 kr, under18s: free adm; www.smk.dk Focusing on the fine details in classic drawings and paintings from the 18th century to 1930. BF
French masterpieces
Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek, Dantes Plads 7, Cph V; ends April 30; open Tue-Sun 11:0017:00; Entry 75kr; 3341 8141; www.glyptoteket.com This array of French masterpieces will take you on a journey through from 1850 to the 20th century. LD
Gotham Gallery, Ravnsborg Tværgade 3B, Cph N; ends Jan 9; open by appointment only; www. gothamgallery.com American-born, Copenhagen-based artist Brandon Lewis, who is better known by his graffiti name ‘Juse One’, presents new paintings from Denmark’s hip-hop scene. Lewis paints graffiti-inspired portraits of local musicians and artists in his ongoing series. Lewis owns and runs the gallery. BF
Treasures in the Royal Library
The Black Diamond, Søren Kierkegaards Plads 1, Cph K; ends 2015; www.kb.dk Gutenberg’s bible, the notes of philosopher Søren Kierkegaard, the diaries of fairy tale author Hans Christian Andersen and a wide range of other invaluable cultural treasures have been immersed into a pop art jungle by Russian artist Andrey Bartenev. MAR
CONTINUED ON G4
SØREN KJÆR
Bizet’s sultry señorita is back
G3