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The opera premiered in Milan six years ago

'Quartett': a complete audio-visual experience at the Liceu opera house

With stage management by Àlex Ollé, this version of Luca Francesconi’s opera is a reflection on the decadence of certain social classes.

A couple in a cage that is suspended on the stage, symbolising the emotional alienation of the characters. They are the Viscount of Valmont – played by Robin Adams – and the Marques of Merteuil – with Allison Cook in the role. They are caught up in a game of seduction and the only way out is through death. One sole act contains the exposition, the climax and the denouement of the opera Quartett which, following its premiere at the Teatro alla Scala de Milà on 26 April 2011, is finally appearing at Barcelona’s Gran Teatre del Liceu from 22 February to 3 March.

This staging, which has been presented as a complete audio-visual experience, features stage management by Àlex Ollé of La Fura dels Baus and, like all of this theatre group’s creations, is easier to see than to explain. Musical direction is by Peter Rundel, the stage design is by Alfons Flores and costume design is by Lluc Castells.

The libretto of Quartett is by composer, pedagogue and music director Luca Francesconi and is a reworking of Heiner Müller’s version of Les Liaisons Dangereuses. The story is set in the aristocratic circles of 18th century Paris and the two characters on stage change their roles continually, until they take this game to its limit. The text is a reflection on the decadence of certain social classes and, as the promotional video claims, aims to make spectators question what they do and who they are.

Additional information is available on the Gran Teatre del Liceu website.

Publication date: Monday, 20 February 2017
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