The Scandinavian House in Brno in cooperation with Chamber Opera, Faculty of Music JAMU and Na Orlí Theatre put on stage the original opera S.A.M.P.O. which will have its world premiere during the festival Janáček Brno (28. 9. – 16. 10.).
The performance will be followed by a discussion with Otto Kauppinen (the author of the libretto) and Michal Švec (translator from Finnish and expert on the Kalevala).
The Finnish mythology tells a story of the mythical Sampo, an artefact connected to welfare and the whole world’s continuity. Science can nowadays track people’s genetic footprint thousands of years into the past. In the near future, there are two neuropharmaceutical corporations competing for power. One of them succeeds in creating a substance with the ability to transport people into the ancient myth so that they can relive the story of their ancestors. It does not, however, have to be as perfect as the stories we use on the social networks to create our own identity. Is today’s humanity ready to face the truth about itself?
The Kalevala is a 19th-century work of epic poetry compiled by Elias Lönnrot from Karelian and Finnish oral folklore and mythology, often called the Finnish national epic. S.A.M.P.O. takes the Kalevala as a source of inspiration and updates its themes and characters into a story that takes place in the near future.
The play begins at 20:00. The discussion starts at 21:15 and takes about an hour.
Author of the music and conductor: Daniel Šimek
Author of the libretto and dramaturge: Otto Kauppinen
Director: Kateřina Křivánková
The entrance to the discussion is a part of the ticket for the whole play
Theatre Evenings or Who is afraid of…?
In cooperation with selected theatres introducing texts of Scandinavian authors, the Scandinavian House has launched a series of Nordic Theatre Evenings. We would like the audience to get a deeper insight into the Scandinavian drama, that might not be as popular as the Nordic crime fiction, but can become similarly addictive. Do not be afraid to start tracking the Nordic theatre in the Czech Republic! Unusual horizons and views of the Nordic landscape guaranteed. No need for skis.
The events are organised as commented theatre performances and consist of e. g. a lecturer’s introduction before the performance or a discussion of a various kind, for example sharing of impressions of the play. The introduction provides information about the author, the performed text and a broader context of the piece, or can even familiarise the audience with the performing tradition of more famous, repeatedly staged dramatic texts. After the performance, there is an opportunity to discuss it together. The Theatre Evenings take place in different Prague and Brno theatres 2-4 times a year, depending on the current programmes.
The events are organized with the financial support of statutory town Brno, Prague City Hall and the Ministry of Culture in the Czech Republic.
