http://www.holten.com/index.htmlHot News!enen2017-09-02T14:26:25+02:00 hourly 1 2000-01-01T12:00+00:00 Thu, 5 Jan 2017 13:27:18 +0100Blog2017-09-02T14:26:25+02:00http://www.holten.com/blog/files/eadc80865b67317861df9bd7e6d3c14c-9.html#unique-entry-id-9http://www.holten.com/blog/files/eadc80865b67317861df9bd7e6d3c14c-9.html#unique-entry-id-9Minister for Culture Mette Bock: To take on the position as Chairman of the Board for Danish Dance Theatre (Dansk Danseteater) and another one as a member of the new Advisory Board (Museumsrådet) for the National Gallery of Danmark (Statens Museum for Kunst). I am thrilled if some of my experiences from running opera companies in Denmark and in London can be used to help these outstanding organisations, and I look forward myself to learning more about them and their work. ]]>Blog2017-08-08T08:27:18+02:00http://www.holten.com/blog/files/f12094c8e9b2f775a87be4f783fc635d-8.html#unique-entry-id-8http://www.holten.com/blog/files/f12094c8e9b2f775a87be4f783fc635d-8.html#unique-entry-id-8Following on from Carmen on the lake in Bregenz, doing the world premiere of Daniel Bjarnason's Brothers at Den Jyske Opera in Aarhus is not just a huge honor, but also the perfect antidote: A dark, contemporary, compact and intense piece, which goes straight to the core of the terrifying story without any sentiment. This is an opera about the price we pay for going to war, a story about the difficult coming home, but also about universal human emotions and how much pain we can inflict on others and ourselves. Steffen Aarfing and I have kept the production very simple to allow the intense colors in Daniel's music to come out - and I believe Daniel has written a masterpiece. He will be the next big thing in opera, I swear! The opera is part of the Bier Trilogy, with a new opera, musical and dance piece based on three Susanne Bier movies as part of Kulturby 2017 (European Capital of Culture 2017), and we are proud to start the project with Brothers.]]>Blog2017-08-08T08:21:53+02:00http://www.holten.com/blog/files/a368d15724d9a1044a80a31e6f65da0b-7.html#unique-entry-id-7http://www.holten.com/blog/files/a368d15724d9a1044a80a31e6f65da0b-7.html#unique-entry-id-7
Doing Carmen on the lake stage in Bregenz was one of the most extraordinary experiences I have ever had in my professional life. It was amazing to work on this scale, outdoors, and trying to tell this famous story in a fresh, uncluttered, entertaining but also probing way, doing away with cliches and getting to the core of the story about two people who are both fighting for their place in life, who need each other, and who end up destroying each other! But the most incredible thing was the people, the colleagues, behind, in front, beneath, above, around the stage - singers, musicians, technicians and everyone else involved in this long, intense process, and of course especially the creative team around me. I am really proud of the result, and of the fact that almost 400,000 people will see Carmen live on the Bodensee in 2017 and 2018. But as the shows are totally sold out for 2017 already, you have a chance - if you don't want to wait for 2018 - to watch the production on DVD.]]>Blog2017-04-25T00:13:32+02:00http://www.holten.com/blog/files/1d226607cfd1ea1a677384ee02ab3455-6.html#unique-entry-id-6http://www.holten.com/blog/files/1d226607cfd1ea1a677384ee02ab3455-6.html#unique-entry-id-6
It is not just my South American debut tomorrow night - it is the first time I visit South America at all. It has been a truly fascinating experience to explore the magical city that Buenos Aires is, and to work in the renowned Teatro Colon to recreate our production of Wagner's youthful sin Das Liebesverbot. My assistant Barbara Lluch has done an incredible work with both casts, and it has been fantastic to come and put the finishing touches on the work. Das Liebesverbot is a surprisingly fun and light comedy, almost as if 24-year old Wagner was trying to write an operetta or an Italian comic opera. There are sudden glimpses of the Wagner he is later to become (and the lack of brevity and impossible demands on the singers are traits that are already well-developed!), but I hope the audience will first and foremost come to enjoy and take it as a fun satire on how hypocrisy thrives around - and in - all of us, on its own terms. Good luck to Maestro Oliver von Dohnányi, singers Lise Davidsen, Hernán Iturralde, Peter Lodahl & co!]]>Blog2017-03-24T17:17:23+01:00http://www.holten.com/blog/files/0ad3c0b25fd0208a6cf5ea4f84d98dc0-5.html#unique-entry-id-5http://www.holten.com/blog/files/0ad3c0b25fd0208a6cf5ea4f84d98dc0-5.html#unique-entry-id-5
My next new production to open will be "Carmen" at Bregenz Festival, on the amazing lake stage. Designing a show for that stage poses so many challenges and opportunities, and it has been a fascinating process to learn about changing water levels, about hiding loudspeakers, about keeping people safe at height and in water, and at the same time to stick to telling a story and designing a set that will be striking AND work as an acting arena. It has been a big secret what we were planning, but now it can't be kept secret much more - as after years of preparations Es Devlin's fantastic design is finally being built now on the lake in Bergen. To see it take shape, follow the webcam showing the progress - and come see the show when it opens late July 2017!]]>Blog2017-02-24T17:40:35+01:00http://www.holten.com/blog/files/a5b01c8ddafda1161368d56e14093743-4.html#unique-entry-id-4http://www.holten.com/blog/files/a5b01c8ddafda1161368d56e14093743-4.html#unique-entry-id-4Watch our Insight Event at the Royal Opera House where I talk about preparations for Meistersinger together with my wonderful colleagues on the production Bryn Terfel, Rachel Willis-Sørensen, Gwyn Hughes Jones, Tony Pappano, Andrew Tortise and Susanna Stranders. We open on 11 March and are working hard on bringing out many of the wonderful complex layers and details of this piece. I talk about the inspiration for the production 57 mins into the event. ]]>Blog2017-02-05T13:40:52+01:00http://www.holten.com/blog/files/73cfdefc68864d73bc2834d335891413-3.html#unique-entry-id-3http://www.holten.com/blog/files/73cfdefc68864d73bc2834d335891413-3.html#unique-entry-id-3
I had so much fun directing Wagner's early opera "Das Liebesverbot" at Teatro Real in Madrid last year, my first collaboration with the wonderful Ivor Bolton. The opera sounds like a Donizetti or Rossini in German, with the occasional hint of the Wagner he later became - and it is genuinely funny! It questions hypocrisy and seems extremely relevant to our time. I am so thrilled that it got filmed, and that is now available on a DVD from Opus Arte - before the production travels to Buenos Aires in 2017 and London in 2019. ]]>Blog2017-01-11T14:40:15+01:00http://www.holten.com/blog/files/d2bd1c94436e2ea132265b297b9079cf-2.html#unique-entry-id-2http://www.holten.com/blog/files/d2bd1c94436e2ea132265b297b9079cf-2.html#unique-entry-id-2Creating my new production of Wagner's "Flying Dutchman" with Finnish National Opera was a very intense and fulfilling experience. I worked really closely with the cast, not least Johan Reuter and Camilla Nylund, to find a truthful expression for this mythological drama. The production was seen as controversial by some, whilst others felt it had deep insights into Wagner's work. Now you can see for yourself, as it will be available to watch for free on Finnish Television YLE's homepage]]>Blog2017-01-11T14:05:12+01:00http://www.holten.com/blog/files/58a30a5b82675455f98d7d8497d6b8c8-1.html#unique-entry-id-1http://www.holten.com/blog/files/58a30a5b82675455f98d7d8497d6b8c8-1.html#unique-entry-id-1
My final production in London as Director of Opera at ROH will be Wagner's "Meistersinger", and I am of course thrilled to be doing this amazing and complex work at ROH, with Tony Pappano, Bryn Terfel and all the rest of a wonderful cast. "Meistersinger" is a very special challenge, as it weaves a lot of characters together in a subtle and delicate way, constantly shifting the point-of-view and maybe suggesting that art itself is the lead character. The piece looks at the relationship between artists and audiences, and I will certainly be drawing on my own experiences in trying to make the opera come alive in a truthful way. But "Meistersinger" is a comedy as well as being quite profound, and it all needs to be done with charm and quite subtle. The devil is in the detail, I think - making the acting, the characters all interesting and convincing. Am now doing the final preparations before starting rehearsals in two weeks. The piece is long and we only have six weeks, so it will be full speed as soon as we get started. Stay tuned.]]>Blog2017-01-05T15:20:53+01:00http://www.holten.com/blog/files/73e9ffec4fe2e4752c9c5cf99925e3bb-0.html#unique-entry-id-0http://www.holten.com/blog/files/73e9ffec4fe2e4752c9c5cf99925e3bb-0.html#unique-entry-id-0 I am very excited about my London production of Szymanowki's fantastic opera "Krol Roger" now going to Australia. Opera Australia is a coproducer, together with Dallas Opera, and will present the production Sydney in January 2017 and then in Melbourne in May 2017. I had a fantastic time in Sydney with "Eugene Onegin" in 2014, so I am thrilled about bringing another production to Australia. And, of course, for a Dane it is extra special to get to work in Danish architect Jørn Utzon's iconic opera house.]]>