Ariadne auf Naxos
2013
Slapstick comedy and high dramatic opera collide in Richard Strauss's ingenious Ariadne auf Naxos. This sitcom set to music is the kind of tale you'd get if you threw the characters of Edith Hamilton's Mythology (oh, you remember...that really thick book about Greek gods you were required to read in school) in a blender with the cast of a sketch comedy show, à la Saturday Night Live. Add in some fiery vocal pyrotechnics that would turn Ariana Grande or Mariah Carey green with envy, a heavy dose of director David Gately's comedic genius, and some of the most transcendent music of the 20th century, and you have an opera for everyone. Led by a cast of spectacular singers as funny as they are talented, this rarely performed classic was a hit of the 2013 FWO Festival.
