The Foundation - News

30 April 2011:
Taboo topic as opera libretto - Premiere of Shchedrin’s „Lolita“ in Germany

The Russian composer and librettist Rodion Shchedrin uses a very delicate issue in his opera „Lolita“. Based on the legendary and infamous novel by the Russian writer Vladimir Nabokov (1899-1977) Shchedrin shows the tragic story of a forbidden liaison between a twelve year old girl and a middle-aged man. As expected the German premiere of the opera in Wiesbaden did not leave the audience cold and made again headlines – just as it did in 1994 by its world premiere in Sweden. The subject of this opera is not easy to digest for those, who associate musical theatre only with entertainment as a rule. Shchedrin does not give space for flagitious male fantasies, but shows the ugly face of sexual abuse of underage persons as result of a misguided and uncontrolled obsession.

The next performances of the opera in the enthralling staging of Konstanze Lauterbach will be on 16 May 2011 and on 1 June 2011 (at 19:30) at the Hessian State Theatre of Wiesbaden.