The party to end all parties is about to begin. Two contrasting entertainments have been scheduled: a tragic opera by a young composer with high ideals, and a burlesque comedy. Now dinner has overrun, the diva is in a temper, the fireworks are about to begin, and, to everybody’s horror, both groups must perform at the same time.
Strauss’s Viennese backstage comedy of pretension and pragmatism sees the worlds of art and entertainment collide in a score rich with opulent melodies, witty ensembles and coloratura high jinks, as the comedienne, Zerbinetta, and her sidekicks interrupt the composer’s opera and introduce the tragic heroine Ariadne to a new beau, Bacchus.
At the heart of Strauss’s tour de force – the first opera of his to be performed at OHP – is a battle between high and low art, and the message that, with a little help from unexpected sources, even the most broken of hearts can sometimes be mended.
