On 4th February, Landestheater Coburg, Bavaria, presented a new, radical production of Janáček’s Cunning Little Vixen. The Hungarian director duo Alexandra Szemerédy and Magdolna Parditka, who are also responsible for the scenography and costumes, completely abandoned the animal realm and set the story into the world of child prostitution in Eastern Europe.
Cages holding underage girls prisoner dominate the stage, police are pursuing their investigation, shooting is going on; no wonder that viewers aged sixteen or more only are allowed to see the performance. The first reactions to the unconventional production seem, however, to be very positive overall. The opera is sung in German translation with title role of Vixen performed by the ensemble’s permanent member, soprano Ana-Cvetkovic-Stojnic; the other cast includes, among others, Kora Pavelic (the Fox), Peter Schöne (Forester) as well as a young Czech baritone Jiří Rajniš as Harašta. The theatre’s general music director Roland Kluttig is conducting. There will be eleven more performances by the end of the 2016/2017 season.
4 February, Landestheater Coburg, Coburg, Germany
Leoš Janáček: The Cunning Little Vixen (premiere)
Directed by: Alexandra Szemerédy, Magdolna Parditka, music director: Roland Kluttig
further performances: Feb 9, 16, 19, 21 and 24, Mar 3, 8, 11 and 15, Apr 29, May 7 2017