Three art forms come together tonight at Severance Hall. The Cleveland Orchestra is joining forces with opera stars and the Joffrey Ballet for a unique double-bill titled “Bartok on Stage.”
WKSU’s Vivian Goodman reports on the world premiere production.
Dancers, singers and musicians will collaborate in Cleveland for four concerts beginning tonight and running through the weekend.
Two works by the 20th Century Hungarian composer Bela Bartok will be performed.
Dark themes
The Miraculous Mandarin is a one-act pantomime ballet about prostitution and murder. Equally dark in tone is Bartok’s one-act opera Bluebeard’s Castle. The blood-soaked psychosexual thriller about marital secrets will be sung in Hungarian.
The Cleveland Orchestra is working with powerful partners on both productions.
Opera greats
Music Director Franz Welser Most has re-introduced opera to Severance Hall during his tenure. For Bluebeard’s Castle, he’s brought in two of the world’s leading opera singers, bass Mikhail Petrenko and soprano Katarina Dalayman.
Since 2009, the Cleveland Orchestra and the Chicago-based Joffrey Ballet have performed together at both Blossom Music Center and Severance Hall. For “Bartok on Stage,” they’ve expanded their partnership, commissioning new choreography, staging and costume and set design.