THE GAMBLER, an opera in four acts by Sergei S. Prokofiev, is at the Theater Basel through June 17.
The plot is set in the fictional spa town of Roulettenburg, where appearances rule the day. A down at heel general is speculating on an inheritance from his wealthy great aunt in Moscow. However, instead of dying, Babulenka arrives hearty in Roulettenburg and gambles away all her money in no time. Meanwhile the private tutor Alexei also loses a small fortune in the hope of impressing his adored Polina. But Alexei only gets more deeply addicted.
Based on the novel by Fyodor M. Dostoyevsky, his partly autobiographical novel about an obsessive gambler is heightened musically in Sergei S. Prokofiev's opera. With its relentless driving energy, Prokofiev's composition portrays a society in the grip of a fever, putting itself at stake by renouncing all its liabilities. Luck is conspicuous by its absence - both in gambling and in love.
For tickets and more information, please visit https://www.theater-basel.ch/Schedule/The-Gambler/oMnInFGF/Pv4Ya/
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