Fatma Gultekin

Opera - Production by the Academy

The Rape of Lucretia

Benjamin Britten

Paris Opera | Théâtre des Bouffes-du-Nord

from 19 to 29 May 2021

2h05 with 1 interval

The Rape of Lucretia

Paris Opera | Théâtre des Bouffes-du-Nord - from 19 to 29 May 2021

Synopsis

Benjamin Britten composed The Rape of Lucretia in 1946 after a radio-drama by André Obey. Britten and his librettist, two convinced pacifists involved way before WWII, address a European society bruised by war and hate. Running from the grand operatic machine, their inspiration drove them to a more intimate construction, the chamber opera. Britten wrote indeed for a small number of musicians and singers-actors in a musical and dramatic language where the narration exceeds the illusion on stage.
Britten chose the myth of the dedicated and suicidal wife and wrote a piece that interrogates desire in its relation with anxiety: mutual love, gulty will and frustration. Britten makes us think about the violence in human relations, about sexuality and its dark zones. With Lucretia as heroin and victim, Britten makes us face the tragic human condition.

Duration : 2h05 with 1 interval

Artists

Creative team

  • Benjamin Britten
    Benjamin Britten Music
  • opera logo
    Ronald Duncan Libretto
  • opera logo
    Léo Warynski Conductor
  • opera logo
    Jeanne Candel Director
  • opera logo
    Lisa Navarro Set design
  • opera logo
    Pauline Kieffer Costume design
  • opera logo
    César Godefroy Lighting design

Cast

Media

  • Music at the heart of theatre

    Music at the heart of theatre

    Watch the video

Music at the heart of theatre

Watch the video

Jeanne Candel directs The Rape of Lucretia for the Academy

5:56 min

Music at the heart of theatre

By Konstantinos Aspiotis

From 19 to 29 May, the Academy's artists in residence will return to the stage and the public with Benjamin Britten's The Rape of Lucretia presented at the Théâtre des Bouffes du Nord. For the occasion, director Jeanne Candel discusses the challenges of this intimate work, often described as a chamber opera, which invites us to reflect on the ambivalence of desire and the violence of human relationships. 

Access and services

In both our venues, discounted tickets are sold at the box offices from 30 minutes before the show:

  • €35 tickets for under-28s, unemployed people (with documentary proof less than 3 months old) and senior citizens over 65 with non-taxable income (proof of tax exemption for the current year required)
  • €70 tickets for senior citizens over 65

Get samples of the operas and ballets at the Paris Opera gift shops: programmes, books, recordings, and also stationery, jewellery, shirts, homeware and honey from Paris Opera.

In both our venues, discounted tickets are sold at the box offices from 30 minutes before the show:

  • €35 tickets for under-28s, unemployed people (with documentary proof less than 3 months old) and senior citizens over 65 with non-taxable income (proof of tax exemption for the current year required)
  • €70 tickets for senior citizens over 65

Get samples of the operas and ballets at the Paris Opera gift shops: programmes, books, recordings, and also stationery, jewellery, shirts, homeware and honey from Paris Opera.

Partners

  • Principal sponsor of the Academy of the Paris Opera

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