Nabucco at the Cathedral
The Amabilis orchestra from Lausanne and the Horizons vocal ensemble from Yverdon-les-Bains will present Verdi's famous opera "Nabucco" on November 17, 18, 20 and 21 at Lausanne Cathedral. The theme of immigration, at the heart of this opera, will be brought to the fore in an original and somewhat audacious version.
Conductor Ferran Gili-Millera and stage directors Gérard Demierre and Jean-Philippe Guillois present an original vision of Verdi's work, in a project featuring some 120 singers and musicians, as well as internationally renowned soloists. The choir has been prepared by Michel Cavin, and the production is under the direction of Yves Golay, President of Amabilis.
The scenography will be out of the ordinary, as the seats for the spectators and the scenery will be created from scratch, thanks to a major wooden project imagined and designed by EPFL. The cathedral will be completely emptied, while bleachers, benches and an immense spiral symbolizing human pride on stage will be built using a novel architecture and assembly technique devised by EPFL's IBOIS construction laboratory.
Human pride and its devastating consequences are at the heart of this opera. Nabucco is first and foremost a story of slavery, of a people under the yoke of a tyrant who believes himself to be a god. A dense work, mixing religion with politics, power with ambition, in a troubled and torn world that echoes many of today's troubles. A topical theme, sung, acted and staged as a tribute to the many forcibly displaced people and migrants on the world's roads and seas.
This out-of-the-ordinary project required considerable resources, which 70% raised through third-party, mainly private, funding. Donations are still possible via a crowdfunding operation at www.lokalhelden.ch/fr/nabucco2018.
