Festival D'Aix-en-Provence Presents 65th Season

The 65th annual Festival d'Aix-en-Provence, under the leadership of General Manager Bernard Foccroulle, will feature five opera productions, a selection of orchestral concerts, recitals, chamber music performances, world music programs, and more than 50 events from the 16th annual European Academy of Music. The Festival marks important milestones this year: Giuseppe Verdi and Richard Wagner's 200th birthday anniversaries; Benjamin Britten's centennial; the 50th anniversary of Francis Poulenc's death; and celebrates Marseille-Provence 2013, European Cultural Capital for the year. All events unfold in extraordinary venues, many of them open-air, in and around the picturesque ancient Provençal city: a Medieval archbishop's palace, an 18th century Italian-style theatre, a private courtyard hidden behind doors dating back to the time of Louis XV, and an 11th century Romanesque chapel inside the grounds of a Renaissance castle - as well as a state of the art, 1,350-seat theatre. The official portion of the Festival runs from July 4 to 27, 2013.

"For years, the Festival d'Aix has been eager to nurture the intersection of southern European, north African and Middle Eastern cultures," says Bernard Foccroulle. "This year, besides celebrating great anniversaries and giving our audiences an exceptional season, Marseille-Provence 2013, European Capital of Culture, has given us the opportunity to open ourselves up to Mediterranean cultures both near and distant. Besides an inter-cultural dialogue, the Festival's 2013 program also provides the opportunity for fertile exchanges between tradition and modernity and between historical legacies and the future."

The five 2013 productions continue the Festival's longtime reputation as one of the world's foremost opera producers. This season's program, which includes three new productions and a world premiere, spans the 17th through the 21st centuries. It offers a vast variety of musical and dramatic styles, exemplifying the triple mission of the Festival d'Aix-en-Provence: to present innovative productions of operatic classics; to support the creation of new works by today's leading composers; and to bring back forgotten masterpieces to the stage.

At the Grand Théâtre de Provence, stage director Patrice Chéreau and Esa-Pekka Salonen, conducting the Orchestre de Paris, take on the challenge of Richard Strauss' powerful Elektra, who will not rest until she has avenged the murder of her father Agamemnon. Hugo Von Hofmannstahl's libretto makes of Sophocles' ancient drama a searing statement on the human psyche, underlined by Strauss's muscular score. Singers Evelyn Herlitzius, Waltraud Meier, Adrianne Pieczonka and Mikhail Petrenko lead the outstanding cast. This new co-production with the Metropolitan Opera, Finnish National Opera, the Gran Teatre del Liceu in Barcelona and Berlin State Opera, features sets by Richard Peduzzi.

At the Théâtre de l'Archevêché, the new production of Giuseppe Verdi's masterful Rigoletto by Robert Carsen showcases a talented young cast that includes George Gagnidze, Irina Lungu, Giuseppe Filianoti, Arturo Chacon Cruz and Gábor Bretz in this popular adaptation of a Victor Hugo story about how a duke's jester sets off a tragic series of events when he tries to protect his daughter Gilda from the harsh realities of love. Maestro Gianandrea Noseda leads the Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir and the London Symphony Orchestra.

Mozart's Don Giovanni returns to Aix in the acclaimed production by Dmitri Tcherniakov at the Théâtre de l'Archevêché. Marc Minkowski conducts the London Symphony Orchestra, with the Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir as well as a cast of rising stars including Rod Gilfry, Kyle Ketelsen, Maria Bengtsson and Paul Groves in this much-lovEd Morality tale about a philanderer's just desserts adapted by Lorenzo da Ponte.

Returning to Aix following last season's triumph with Written on Skin, Katie Mitchell directs the world premiere of Portuguese composer Vasco Mendonça's The House Taken Over. With a libretto adapted by Sam Holcroft from the novel Casa Tomada by Julio Cortázar, the opera follows the psychologically dark story of a brother and sister whose lives grow ever narrower and more claustrophobic inside their ancestral home. The roles of the two siblings will be premiered by Oliver Dunn and Kitty Whately. Etienne Siebens will conduct the Asko|Schönberg Ensemble at the historic Domaine du Grand Saint-Jean, which eerily echoes the country house in Cortázar's story.

At the historically appropriate Théâtre du Jeu de Paume, musical director Leonardo Garcia Alarcon and stage director Jean-Yves Ruf recreate the first production in three-and-a-half centuries of Elena, a dramma per musica by Francesco Cavalli. The Helen of the title is the face that launched a thousand ships, but in the libretto by Giovanni Faustini, Menelaus, Theseus and Menestheus compete for the object of their desire. The 1659 Venice premiere of this opera was a success, and was revived in Palermo two years later. But though the libretto was published and the score copied at Cavalli's request, the complete opera was never performed again. The cast includes Emöke Barath, Valer Barna-Sabadus, Fernando Guimaraes and Solenn' Lavanant Linke.

The 2013 Festival's concert series will include symphonic performances at the Grand Théâtre de Provence featuring: the London Symphony Orchestra conducted by Gianandrea Noseda and tenor Ian Bostridge in works by Britten and Shostakovich; the Orchestre de Paris in a Beethoven and Wagner concert, led by Esa-Pekka Salonen with bass René Pape, a second program of Berlioz, De Falla, Ravel and Lalo with conductor Alain Altinoglu, mezzo-soprano Nora Gubisch and violinist Vadim Repin; and Lisbon's Coro Gulbenkian in a program of sacred choral music by Bach, de Almeida, Fauré, Poulenc, and Milhaud at Saint-Sauveur Cathedral.

Venezia, da camera e da chiesá - Sacred and Secular Venetian Music of the Seventeenth Century, will be performed by harpsichordist Jean-Marc Aymes and soprano Maria Cristina Kiehr, as well as singers and intrumentalists of the Académie européenne de musique. The concert will consist of the magnificent "new music" of Claudio Monteverdi, Francesco Cavalli and their Venetian peers. Also at the Church of Saint Jean de Malte, Aymes will offer an organ and harpsichord recital of works by composers such as Girolamo Frescobaldi, Andrea Gabrieli and Bernardo Storace, to show off the contrapuntally rich keyboard repertoire of early-baroque Venice, Rome and Naples.

Tunisian violinist-composer Jasser Haj Youssef and quartet will offer a concert celebrating his début album Sira, with the help of the Camerata of l'Orchestre des Jeunes de la Méditerranée. The musical styles include baroque, contemporary, jazz and world influences, reflecting the conclusion of a Mediterranean intercultural partnership workshop designed to expose youth orchestra participants to many genres of music.

The renowned Jerusalem Quartet will present two programs of works by Mozart, Beethoven, Brahms, Smetana and Janácek. At the memorial of the Camp des Milles, Quatuor Béla presents a program of works of three central European composers whose lives were indelibly changed by Nazi Germany: Belá Bartók, who fled to the United States; György Ligeti, who lost nearly his whole family to deportation and extermination; and Czech Erwin Schulhoff, who died of exhaustion at the Wülzburg concentration camp.

As part of its world music programming in partnership with Marseille-Provence 2013, European Cultural Capital, the Festival presents cross-genre show AlefBa, which is the Persian term for alphabet. Under the artistic direction of Fabrizio Cassol, with ensemble, musicians and singers from Europe, Arab countries including Syria, Lebanon and Egypt, the concert will focus on the cultural aftermath of the Tahrir Square protests in Cairo. Eighteen months after the Arab Spring, Cairo has been a crucible of musical ferment as well, mixing traditional with modern and classical with dance and pop. Fabrizio Cassol has tapped into this musical energy to bring his audience an oratorio of the people - Tahrir-style.

16th Académie Européenne de Musique (European Academy of Music)
At the heart of the Festival d'Aix-en-Provence is a place devoted to musical training and sharing. The Festival has devoted part of its actions to train and promote young artists thanks to its Académie Européenne de Musique. Every year in June and July, the Académie welcomes young singers, instrumentalists and creators selected worldwide and wishing to further their training in Aix-en-Provence at seven residencies that run in June and July. Coming to work under the guidance of great artists and professors, they develop their vocal and instrumental interpretation as much as their talent for musical and scenic creation. The Académie usually welcomes approximately 8,000 spectators, and 2013 will offer the chance for them to discover approximately 200 young artists in almost 50 public events, including masterclasses, public performances, concerts and recitals, from June 3rd to July 27.

The Vocal Academy is open to singers and collaborative pianists finishing their studies and starting their professional career, frequently leading to roles in future Festival's productions. The 2013 residencies include work on Poulenc's Les Mamelles de Tirésias, art song, Mozart, Cavalli, and contemporary repertoire. The Academy of Chamber Music hosts a July residency for young professional ensembles wishing to expand their artistic horizons under the guidance of internationally renowned artists such as Andràs Keller and the Jerusalem String Quartet. The Opera Creation Workshop is a public conference held at the end of June and beginning of July to address the many facets of opera creation and interdisciplinary collaboration.

The Youth Orchestra of the Festival d'Aix-en-Provence welcomes advanced students from the Aix region to the Orchestra Academy. Since 2010, soloists of the London Symphony Orchestra have mentored the young instrumentalists of the Orchestre des Jeunes de la Méditerranée du Festival d'Aix-en-Provence. In 2013, the youth orchestra, led by Kristjan Jarvi, joins forces with choreographer Josette Baïz for two performances of Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliette, featuring approximately 180 young musicians (from 20 Mediterranean countries) and dancers.

A prelude to the Festival d'Aix-en-Provence: Festival d'Aix IN JUNE
Starting on June 14, visitors to Aix will have the opportunity to see operas, concerts, recitals and masterclasses - some of them free - that will showcase the young artists of the Académie Européenne de Musique, as well as the established musicians involved in the Festival's regular programming in July. As was the case in 2012, these advance events will culminate in PARADE(S), a free open-air concert at the Cours Mirabeau. The 2013 edition will feature highlights from Rigoletto, including the London Symphony Orchestra and conductor Gianandrea Noseda. Several June events will present themed weekend performances around significant composer anniversaries. Full details on June concerts and events will be released in March.

One of the Académie highlights of 2013 is a semi staged performance at the Bois de l'Aune of Poulenc's Les Mamelles de Tirésias, featuring an orchestral reduction for two pianos by Benjamin Britten that has not been performed since its premiere at Aldeburgh in 1958. Based on a fantastical play by Guillaume Apollinaire with an egalitarian and pacifist message, the story follows the title character who changes genders in order to help foster equality between men and women - all the while exposing us to some of Poulenc's most expressive music.

Krasa's children's opera Brundibár, will be sung by children who have been honing their singing abilities since 2010. The bitter two-act fable for children's chorus is about a brother and sister who must sing and overcome Brundibar's noisy organ to earn money for their ailing mother had its premiere on Sept. 23, 1943 in the Terezín (Theresienstadt) concentration camp - a setting to be echoed at the Festival's chosen venue, Camp des Milles.

Je fais ce qui me chante, is a depiction in words and art song of the times, thoughts and sentiments of Francis Poulenc, poet Paul Eluard and singer Pierre Bernac, as we share highlights of their creative and personal correspondence. The performance is staged by Olivier Balazuc, with pianist Nicolas Chesneau as Poulenc, tenor Jérôme Billy as Bernac and actor Thomas Rathier as Eluard.

About Marseille-Provence 2013, European Capital of Culture
The Marseille-Provence region, with a population of 2 million, includes towns and cities throughout the Provence region: from Marseille to Aix, Arles, Aubagne, Istres and Martigues. Marseille-Provence 2013 - the association created to lead the region's bid to become a European Capital of Culture in 2013 - has organized international cultural events aimed at a wide audience. Throughout 2013, hundreds of artistic and cultural events will encompass the performing and visual arts, science and technology, gastronomy and sports. Marseille-Provence 2013 aims to become a hub for creativity and dialogue between European and Mediterranean cultures by encouraging the creation and circulation of new works. Marseille-Provence will also showcase the region's many natural resources and landscapes. With its setting between Europe and the Mediterranean, the region becomes a unique location for the convergence of culture, diversity and tolerance. The programming of this year's Festival d'Aix-en-Provence received the labeling of Marseille-Provence 2013.

Opera

VERDI, RIGOLETTO
Melodrama in 3 acts, libretto by Francesco Maria-Piave, based on Le Roi s'amuse by Victor Hugo

Musical Director Gianandrea Noseda
Stage Director Robert Carsen
Dramaturgy Ian Burton
Sets Radu Boruzescu
Costumes Miruna Boruzescu
Lighting Robert Carsen and Peter van Praet
Choreographer Philippe Giraudeau
Rigoletto George Gagnidze
Gilda Irina Lungu
Il Duca di Mantova Giuseppe Filianoti / Arturo Chacon Cruz
Sparafucile Gábor Bretz
Maddalena Jose Maria Lo Monaco
Giovanna Michèle Lagrange
Il Conte di Monterone Arutjun Kotchinian
Borsa Julien Dran
Marullo Jean-Luc Ballestra
Il Conte di Ceprano Maurizio Lo Piccolo
La Contessa di Ceprano / Paggio Valeria Tornatore

Choir
Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir
Orchestra London Symphony Orchestra
Théâtre de l'Archevêché, July 4, 6, 9, 12, 16, 19, 21, 24 et 26, 2013 - 9:30pm / July 14 - 10pm
New production of Festival d'Aix-en-Provence, in co-production with the Opéra national du Rhin, La Monnaie / De Munt de Bruxelles, the Bolshoi Theatre and the Grand Théâtre de Genève.
Performed in Italian, subtitles in French and English - 2h30 intermission included.

MOZART, DON GIOVANNI
Drama giocoso in 2 acts, libretto by Lorenzo da Ponte

Musical Director Marc Minkowski
Stage Director, stage design Dmitri Tcherniakov
Costumes Dmitri Tcherniakov and Elena Zaytseva
Lighting Gleb Filshtinsky

Don Giovanni Rod Gilfry
Leporello Kyle Ketelsen
Donna Anna Maria Bengtsson
Don Ottavio Paul Groves
Donna Elvira Sonya Yoncheva
Zerlina Joelle Harvey
Masetto Kostas Smoriginas
Il Commendatore Anatoli Kotscherga

Choir Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir
Orchestra London Symphony Orchestra

Théâtre de l'Archevêché, July 5, 8, 10, 13, 15, 18, 20, 23, 2013 - 9:30pm
Revival of Festival d'Aix-en-Provence's 2010 production, coproduced with the Bolshoi Theatre, Teatro Real Madrid and Canadian Opera Company.
Performed in Italian, subtitles in French and English - 3h30 intermission included.

VASCO MENDONÇA, THE HOUSE TAKEN OVER
Libretto by Sam Holcroft, based on Casa Tomada by Julio Cortazar
World Premiere, commission of Festival d'Aix-en-Provence and LOD

Musical Director Etienne Siebens
Stage Director Katie Mitchell
Dramaturge Lyndsey Turner
Sets Alex Eales
Lighting James Farncombe

Brother Oliver Dunn
Sister Kitty Whately

Orchestra Asko | Schönberg
Domaine du Grand Saint-Jean, July 6, 8, 11, 13, 16 et 17, 2013 - 10pm / Domaine opens at 8pm
New Festival d'Aix-en-Provence and Académie européenne de musique production, in co-production with LOD| musical theater, the Grand Théâtre de Luxembourg, De Singel, Asko | Schönberg, and the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation of Lisbon, with support of enoa - (enoa receives support by the Cultural Program of the European Union).
Performed in English with French subtitles - 1h without intermission

CAVALLI, ELENA
Dramma per musica in a prologue and three acts, libretto by Giovanni Faustini and Niccolo Minato

Musical Director Leonardo García Alarcón
Stage Director Jean-Yves Ruf
Sets Laure Pichat
Costumes Claudia Jenatsch
Lighting Christian Dubet

Elena, Venere Emöke Barath
Menelao Valer Barna-Sabadus
Teseo Fernando Guimaraes
Ippolita, Pallade Solenn' Lavanant Linke
Peritoo Rodrigo Ferreira
Iro Emiliano Gonzalez Toro
Menesteo, La Pace Anna Reinhold
Tindaro, Nettuno Scott Conner
Erginda, Giunone, Castore Mariana Flores
Eurite, La Verita Majdouline Zerari
Diomede, Creonte Brendan Tuohy
Euripilo, La Discordia, Polluce Christopher Lowrey
Antiloco Job Tomé

Orchestra Cappella Mediterranea
Théâtre du Jeu de Paume, July 7, 9, 11, 15, 17, 19, 2013 - 7pm / July 14 and 21- 5pm
Théâtre des Salins in Martigues, July 25 and 27, 2013 - 7pm
New Festival d'Aix-en-Provence and Académie européenne de musique production, in co-production with Marseille-Provence 2013, Capitale européenne de la culture - with support of Fondation Orange - l'Opéra de Lille, l'Opéra de Montpellier, Angers Nantes Opéra, l'Opéra de Rennes and the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation of Lisbon - with support from d'enoa - (enoa receives support from the Cultural Program of European Union)
Performed in Italian, with French subtitles - 3h30 including intermission

STRAUSS, ELEKTRA
Tragedy in one act, libretto by Hugo von Hofmannsthal

Musical Director Esa-Pekka Salonen
Stage Director Patrice Chéreau
Artistic collaboration for staging Thierry Thieû Niang
Sets Richard Peduzzi
Lighting Dominique Bruguière
Costumes Caroline de Vivaise
Hair & wigs Campbell Young
Elektra Evelyn Herlitzius
Klytämnestra Waltraud Meier