Carmina Burana and Fura dels Baus collaborated on a production that quickly sold out before its premiere at the Teatro President in Alicante. In response, the company added an extra performance day to meet growing demand, a move reported by the team behind this ambitious show directed by Carlus Padrissa.
In recent seasons this dynamic staging has returned to Alicante several times, with visits to ADDA in 2017 and again in 2022. Audiences have consistently embraced the spectacle. Nearly two months after the initial presentation in the parliament district of Alicante, tickets were released for five performances spanning March 14 through March 17. To accommodate rising interest, the schedule was extended with an additional performance on the calendar and a new sale window opened for tickets at 8:30 p.m. on the stand-alone date of Wednesday, March 13.
more than 50 artists
The production fuses contemporary theater with a bold operatic sensibility, featuring more than fifty performers on stage. La Fura dels Baus crafted an immersive experience for Carmina Burana, delivering striking visuals, inventive stage effects, and even scented elements that envelop the audience in the powerful and visceral accompaniment to Carl Orffs score.
Carlus Padrissa Our Carmina Burana is a brutal experience
On stage a cylinder eight meters in diameter surrounds the musicians, creating a living frame for the performance. Images projected onto the surface depict the work from start to finish: a giant moon the thaw of ice floral abundance a lush grape harvest taverns singers suspended from cranes and bathed in wine water and fire. All of these elements converge in Carmina Burana to forge a memorable intense encounter with the music and its themes.
origin
The original Carmina Burana is a collection of poetry that dates back to the 12th and 13th centuries. It resides in a single codex at the Benediktbeuern Monastery in Bavaria and was compiled by Johann Christoph von Aretin in 1803. Today the codex is housed in the Bavarian State Library in Munich.
The codex comprises roughly 300 poems written primarily in Latin, with portions in German and French. The verses celebrate life and pleasure, explore love and nature, and carry a sharp, satirical view of the social and religious classes of the era.