Cast
Royce Vavrek — Libretto
Mikael Karlsson — Music
Sláva Daubnerová — Stage director
Boris Kudlicka — Set designer
Chrisi Karvonides-Dushenko — Costumes
Tom Visser — Lighting
Charlotta Öfverholm — Choreographer
Katarina Aronsson — Dramatist
Lauren Snouffer — Justine
Rihab Chaieb — Claire
Anne Sofie von Otter — Gaby
Jens Persson Hertzman — Michael
Ola Eliasson — John
Johan Edholm — Jack
Royal Swedish Orchestra
Program notes
Melancholia is now much more than a celebrated film by Lars von Trier, starring Kirsten Dunst and Charlotte Gainsbourg in the lead roles: thanks to Swedish composer Mikael Karlsson, it is now also a fabulous, thought-provoking opera! After several successful collaborations with choreographer Alexander Ekman, Karlsson teamed up with Canadian librettist Royce Vavrek to create this contemporary gem. Justine (soprano Lauren Snouffer) is preparing to be married when she witnesses the giant planet Melancholia leaving its orbit, threatening to enter into a world-ending collision with Earth. Her sister Claire (mezzo-soprano Rihab Chaieb) tries in vain to console Justine, while their mother (Anne Sofie von Otter, bringing her usual masterful intensity) does nothing to calm the bride-to-be. As the apocalyptic meeting between the planets begins to appear inevitable, will Justine manage to escape her numbness in time?
