Kopernikus – Opéra-rituel de mort

Visionary director Peter Sellars resurrects the rarely staged opera of the Québécois composer Claude Vivier, Kopernikus. Sellars, renowned for his radical and creative productions, has described this intimate work as a “mind-blowing” mix of The Magic Flute, Tristan and Isolde and Alice in Wonderland.

Performed by the Grammy Award-winning Roomful of Teeth ensemble and instrumentalists Ensemble L’Instant Donné, this “unimaginably beautiful” opera (Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung) takes audiences on a journey of reconciliation and transcendence following loss and death, guided by the genius of Mozart, Wagner and Lewis Carroll. Kopernikus seeks to reorient the audience’s relationship to the process of dying through a vivid imagining of the beauty and glory of the afterlife.

Composed by: Claude Vivier
Directed by: Peter Sellars

There is a free pre-show talk on Monday 2 March at 6pm in the Opera House foyer.

Partnered by: New Zealand Festival of the Arts Patrons
Thanks to: Carolyn and Peter Diessl