Canadian Stage's Matthew Jocelyn Directs REQUIEM in Buenos Aires to Critical Acclaim

At the close of the 2013/2014 theatre season, Canadian Stage Artistic & General Director Matthew Jocelyn spent a month in Buenos Aires helming Requiem, a major opera project currently on stage at the world renowned Teatro Colon. The production, for which Jocelyn also penned the libretto, opened on June 10 to great critical acclaim, garnering accolades from reviewers, audiences and opera critics across the country.

Requiem, composed by Oscar Strasnoy and based on the novel Requiem for a Nun by William Faulkner, marks Jocelyn's second collaboration with the composer, and first commission from the Teatro Colon. Jocelyn and Strasnoy last partnered on the first production of Le Bal (based the novel by Irène Nemirovski) for the Hamburgische Staatsoper, the National Opera of Hambourg, which premiered as part of a triple bill also directed by Jocelyn. Le Bal has since had additional productions in Munich (Prinz Regent Theater) and Paris (Théâtre du Chatelet).

Jocelyn's latest project is a commission to write the libretto for a new opera by Brett Dean for the Glyndebourne Festival in England for the summer of 2017, to be directed by Neil Armfield.

"On behalf of the team at Canadian Stage, it is my pleasure to congratulate Matthew on the overwhelming success of Requiem, and the unanimous critical acclaim and audience response it has garnered since opening last week. Being reported as the first unanimous hit at the Colon in living memory, we are delighted that Matthew's artistic accomplishments are reaching new audiences," said Su Hutchinson, managing director, Canadian Stage. "We're very proud of Matthew's international reputation as a director and librettist and look forward to someday being able to share his operatic works with our audiences here in Canada."

Canadian Stage continues to make a mark on the international stage with the multi-media marvel Helen Lawrence running from June 18 to 27 at the Munich Kammerspiele in Germany, and then presented as part of the Edinburgh International Festival in Scotland from August 24 to 26. The show returns to Canada this fall at Canadian Stage's Bluma Appel Theatre from October 12 to November 1, 2014.

Canadian Stage's 2014.2015 season begins later this month with a double-bill at Shakespeare in High Park, featuring As You Like It and Titus Andronicus. In March 2015, Jocelyn directs the Canadian premiere of Harper Regan by Oliver Award-winning writer Simon Stephens. To read reviews of Requiem or learn more about the 2014.2015 season, visit www.canadianstage.com.

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