Mahagonny Songspiel & Les Mamelles de Tirésias
Directed by Brian Staufenbiel Conducted by Nicole Paiement A boat that travels on dry land… Steampunk… A man giving birth to over 40,000 babies in a single day! Opera Parallèle presents an unforgettable journey, as a theater troupe of desert wanderers sings the jazz-infused melodies of Kurt Weill’s Mahagonny Songspiel. They’re searching for paradise — and that now-rarest of commodities, water — in a shattered world. Along the way, they discover not paradise, but an audience for their performance of Poulenc’s outrageously surreal satire Les mamelles de Tirésias. Brian Staufenbiel’s scenic concept seamlessly melds the two works into one extraordinary operatic experience, under the brilliant musical leadership of Nicole Paiement. "In a magnificent opening, magazine covers and newspaper fronts from this late 21st century setting are projected on a screen for the audience’s uneasy delectation." - SF Chronicle