LA MONNAIE / DE MUNT

Les Huguenots is the story of an impossible love affair between a Catholic woman and a Protestant man against the backdrop of the French religious wars of the 16th century, with the infamous St Bartholomew’s Day massacre as its lowest point. Read the synopsis of the opera here.

Belgian composer Philippe Boesmans (born in Tongeren, May 17, 1936), died in Brussels on Sunday evening after a short illness. We are deeply saddened by the passing of this artist who was so dear to our house and we offer our sincere condolences to his family and friends.

In the run-up to the world premiere of Is this the End?#2, director Ingrid von Wantoch Rekowski and videographer Jose Huedo also produced 5 interludes: intriguing teaser trailers that immerse you in the poetic universe of this new creation.

La Monnaie would like to dedicate this series of performances of the Requiem to Ukrainian citizens and children, victims of a ruthless aggressor intent on reducing a nation, a people, a tradition, a culture, a language and so much more to ‘nothingness’.

The brief contents of the three operas, summarised by stage director Tobias Kratzer.

Heard in movies as diverse as The Iron Lady, 2046 and Avengers: Age of Ultron, "Casta Diva" is one of the most famous arias (more precisely, a cavatina) in operatic history. But there is much more to Norma than this piece alone. The Italian conductor Sesto Quatrini explores five other unforgettable extracts.

A Brueghelian Brabantine or a cosmopolitan who personally knew Rimsky-Korsakov and James Ensor? A 'provincial musician' or an international composer who indulged in jazz and Poulenc, and whose operas were performed several times at La Monnaie? Learn all about the exceptional composer of the Nocturne.

Bringing a production back to life in an opera house, nine years after its first performance, is only possible through a whole series of small steps, all lined up like dominoes. Stretching from the last closing night to the upcoming opening night, they involve every single part of the show, and therefore every department that worked on the original production.

In this programme text, conductor Kwamé Ryan dissects from a personal point of view the topic of multi-ethnic identity and the musical eclecticism in The Time of Our Singing.

In The Time of Our Singing, the US writer Richard Powers describes how, against the backdrop of post-war segregation in his country, a racially mixed family is both united and pulled apart by music. The novel inspired Kris Defoort for his magnum opus. We paid the Belgian composer a visit, to discuss this La Monnaie commission in the company of his librettist Peter van Kraaij.

Colossal images of barking dogs, naked bodies, a grieving Mary Magdalene, and an emblematic beheading scene. Spanish painter Santiago Ydáñez brought out his brushes for our production of Tosca. We asked him how these newly created works came to be.

New creations, reinvented classics and the return of iconic productions, all together no less than 12 operas; but also the 250th anniversary of our Symphony Orchestra, the full expressive spectrum of the voice in our recitals and the best of dance: this is the La Monnaie season 2021-22, as presented by General Director Peter de Caluwe.