LES ENFANTS TERRIBLES (VESZEDELMES ÉDEN)

Length of the performance: 1 hour 50 minutes, without intermission.

Adapted for the stage by Philip Glass and Susan Marshall

Rare is the work on the operatic stage where singers and dancers are of equal importance, the story unfolding out of their shared, mutual expressiveness. This can be seen in the three-piano dance opera A Dangerous Eden, composed by world-renowned composer Philip Glass, born in Baltimore in 1937, as the final part of his own Jean Cocteau trilogy. In the story of Paul and Lise, the two children are prisoners and victims of a world of their own imagination, creating a world through their games that they can no longer separate from reality. The piece can be understood as Cocteau's belief in the transcendent power of imagination and creativity, with singers and dancers taking turns to present events. This is not the first time that Dóra Barta, the director-choreographer of the production, has staged a Philip Glass piece. She was inspired by the Opera's 2016 commission, Planet in turmoil, and says of the composer, "Philip Glass' music is very danceable and liberates the director. His music opens up a series of associations and therefore a wide range of possibilities for the composer. All his music is almost transcendental, which is a great gift for minimalist dance theatre. It allows you to create a performance rich in images and sensual content."