DomStufen-Festspiele in Erfurt 2010
In 2010, the Erfurt Cathedral Steps provided a magnificent backdrop for what is arguably George Frideric Handel’s most famous oratorio – The Messiah. The celebrated “Hallelujah” chorus, which brings the second part of the oratorio to a triumphant close, has since become a true classical hit.
When Handel began composing The Messiah in the summer of 1741, he was facing a difficult period both artistically and financially. His efforts to establish Italian opera in London had ultimately failed by 1740, leaving him with little motivation to pursue new projects. At the same time, however, he had been given the libretto for a new English-language oratorio – a relatively novel form at the time. And, as librettist Charles Jennens remarked, “the subject exceeds all others.” In just 24 days, Handel completed the orchestration of the work, finishing on 14 September 1741. The premiere of The Messiah took place in Dublin in April 1742. Numerous performances followed in the years to come, many conducted by Handel himself, paving the way for its rise to become one of the most performed and beloved choral works of all time.
As part of the DomStufen-Festspiele in Erfurt in 2010, Handel’s Messiah was presented in the richly orchestrated version by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart from 1789. The production was directed by internationally acclaimed director and choreographer Rosamund Gilmore, who had made her debut at Theater Erfurt in the 2008/09 season with the world premiere of Franz Hummel’s opera The Judge and His Hangman, based on the novel by Dürrenmatt – a production that earned her a nomination for the 2009 FAUST Award in the category of Best Direction in Music Theatre. She was joined once again by Carl Friedrich Oberle, who had also been responsible for the stage design in that earlier production, and Hank Irwin Kittel, who designed the costumes. Musical direction was provided by Samuel Bächli, who had taken up the post of First Kapellmeister at Theater Erfurt in the 2009/10 season.
Premiere / August 14, 2010
Cast
Soprano Marisca Mulder, Ilia Papandreou | Mezzo-soprano Mireille Lebel, Stéphanie Müther | Tenor Marwan Shamiyeh, Uwe Stickert | Bass Vazgen Gazaryan, Sebastian Pilgrim | Dance Ensemble: Nadia Dagis, Amalia Emili, Bettina Fritsche, Élodie Lavoignat, Sandra Lommerzheim, Victoria Söntgen, Julien Feuillet-Dolet, Michael Kitzeder, Rafael Valdevieso, Jochen Vogel