Opera Dido & Aeneas

Event

Date
- 22 Oct
  Start date
Time
- 19:30
  Start time
- 21:00
  End time
Location

Martinikerk, Groningen

Location

Concert
Classical Music (full-time)

In collaboration with up-and-coming vocal talent from the Prins Claus Conservatorium, the Luthers Bach Ensemble presents a fully staged performance of the famous opera ‘Dido and Aeneas’.

Revival

The Luthers Bach Ensemble is once again collaborating with the vocal department of the Prins Claus Conservatorium. On the programme is Henry Purcell’s famous opera ‘Dido and Aeneas’: a revival of the sold-out performances from 2023, but this time featuring a new cohort of students. Tenor Olivier Kemler is the only returning performer, reprising the role of Aeneas. The fully staged production is once again led by director Elsina Jansen and artistic director Tymen Jan Bronda.

Story

The opera’s story is based on the ‘Aeneid’, in which the poet Virgil recounts the heroic deeds of Aeneas. However, in the opera, Dido is the central figure. As the widowed Queen of Carthage, she is determined to be a dignified ruler. Despite her initial reservations, she falls in love with the Trojan hero Aeneas. Just as the couple spends their first night together, the Sorceress intervenes to spoil their happiness. She devises a scheme that forces Aeneas to return to Troy, thereby abandoning his beloved Dido. Dido is devastated, which is precisely what the Sorceress and her witches desired. Purcell composed a beautiful and moving lament for this despairing queen, the opera’s highlight: "When I am laid in earth, remember me."

Before the programme break

In addition to this masterful opera, the first half of the program features a selection of exquisite Baroque arias and duets, performed by talented students from the Prins Claus Conservatorium.

Organisation & performers

Prins Claus Conservatorium: Hanneke de Wit’s vocal class
Stage direction: Elsina Jansen
Design: Pascalle van Gurp
Musical coaching (soloists): David van Laar
Artistic direction: Tymen Jan Bronda
Luthers Bach Ensemble Baroque Orchestra