THE MESSIAH

With Messiah we have a perfect example avant la lettre of stories of faith, healing and resurrection (titles such as Parsifal and Paulus will follow). This capolavoro by the “caro Sassone”, a contemporary of Bach and Vivaldi, has already earned him posterity. As Stefan Zweig explains, Händel was commissioned to write an oratorio on the resurrection to be delivered in just 24 days. A few months later, on 13 April 1742, Messiah would premier in Dublin. Händel died 17 years later, but not before he had heard his favourite score for the last time.

The stage version, presented here by cult stage director Robert Wilson, arose from Salzburg’s Mozartwoche where it was performed in January 2020 and it is based on the German version of 1789, arranged by another genius: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Born three years before the maestro’s death, the young Mozart created this arrangement at the request of an important Freemason patron: Gottfried van Swieten who, enamoured of Händel’s oratorios, would also later work on the librettos of

Wilde (The Picture of Dorian Gray

Joseph Haydn’s two oratorios from texts by John Milton: The Creation and The Seasons

As Robert Wilson explains, some view Händel’s Messiah from a Christian perspective, which is also why he raised objections when this sacred oratorio was presented on a theatre stage. “For me Messiah is not so much a religious work, but rather a kind of spiritual journey.” Fascinated by the structure of the composition and an architecture that grants him great creative freedom, Wilson occupies this grandiose, perhaps abstract, almost mathematical music that speaks of hope. The irreparable pressure our society exerts on its protagonist (Jesus) who, avoiding comfort, wants to transform a society and is cruelly tortured, punished and killed.

A genius, at the heights of Palladio or Rembrandt, is born every 200 years. Thus, Mozart adapts the libretto to German, reorchestrates part of the original score and adds small illuminations; as if Van Gogh had repainted La Gioconda. Josep Pons and a bouquet of leading soloists offer us an exciting, precise and thrilling recital.

Julia Lezhneva

Soprano. Born in Sakhalin, she studied at the Gretchaninov School of Music in Moscow and at the Guildhall School in London. She later trained with Dennis O'Neill, Elena Obraztsova, Richard Bonynge, Kiri Te Kanawa and Alberto Zedda. She has sung onstage at La Monnaie in Brussels, De Nationale Opera in Amsterdam, Opéra National de Paris, Theater an der Wien, Royal Opera House in London and the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow. She made her debut at the Gran Teatre del Liceu in the 2016/17 season with Don Giovanni

Richard Croft

Tenor. Throughout his career, he has performed in theatres such as The Metropolitan Opera in New York, Wiener Staatsoper, Teatro alla Scala in Milan, Opéra National de Paris and Staatsoper Berlin, as well as at the Salzburg and Aix-en-Provence festivals, among others. His repertoire ranges from Händel and Mozart to the music of contemporary composers. This is his debut at the Gran Teatre del Liceu.

Kate Lindsey

Mezzo-soprano. Born in Richmond (Virginia), she studied at Indiana University and graduated from the Lindemann Young Artist Program at The Metropolitan Opera in New York. She is the recipient of the 2017 George London Award and the 2007 Lincoln Center Martin E. Segal Award. She has sung at the Royal Opera House in London, the Wiener Staatsoper, the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées in Paris and the Bayerische Staatsoper in Munich. She made her debut at the Gran Teatre del Liceu in the 2017/18 season with the concert version of Ariodante.

Robert Wilson

Stage director. Since the late 1960s, Robert Wilson's productions have decisively shaped the face of theatre and opera. Through his use of light, his inquiries into the structure of simple movement and the classical rigour of his stage and furniture design, Wilson has continually articulated the strength and originality of his vision. He made his debut at the Gran Teatre del Liceu in the 1992/93 season with Einstein on the Beach and returned with Pelléas et Mélisande (2011/12).

11 AND 13 APR 2024—