Cosi fan tutte - Mythic characters, implausible plots, and the art of being watched with stage director R.B. Schlather

Cosi fan tutte - Mythic characters, implausible plots, and the art of being watched with stage director R.B. Schlather

Author: The Santa Fe Opera July 12, 2019 Duration: 38:20

What makes the seemingly ridiculous plot of Così fan tutte such a compelling study of the duality of human nature that we revisit time and again?

How do we understand the play of gender norms and societal pressure through a contemporary lens?

And what's a director to do about a plot point that revolves around mustaches? 

R.B. Schlather is one of the most creative and exciting new opera directors on the scene in America, with a strong emphasis on the visual aspect of performance. He recently he made a huge splash with a production of The Mother of Us All by Virgil Thomson at the Hudson Opera House in upstate New York, which was named as one of the 10 best opera performances of 2017 by the New York Times.

R.B. makes his Santa Fe Opera directorial debut with our new production of Così fan tutte, Mozart's and Da Ponte's final collaboration (after Don Giovanni and Le nozze di Figaro), which has delighted and confounded viewers ever since its 1790 premiere in Vienna.

Find out why Cosi is one of Cori's "desert island operas" and how R.B. had to come around to it eventually.

Follow R.B. a thttps://www.rbschlather.com on Instagram @r_b_schlather.

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Cosi fan tutte runs at the Santa Fe Opera July 13 - August 22, 2019.

Learn more and plan your visit at http://www.santafeopera.org.

We'd love for you to join us on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook @santafeopera. 

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Beyond the Opera is produced for the Santa Fe Opera by Andrea Klunder at The Creative Impostor Studios.

Our audio engineer is Kabby at Kabby Sound Studios in Santa Fe.

Our hosts are dramaturg Cori Ellison and Kathleen Clawson, associate director of the Santa Fe Opera apprentice singer program.

 


Behind every curtain call at The Santa Fe Opera is a world of craft, history, and human effort. Destination Santa Fe Opera pulls back that curtain, offering a rare backstage pass to the artists, technicians, designers, and visionaries who bring the spectacle to life. This podcast is a series of intimate, revealing conversations that go far beyond the performance notes. You’ll hear from a costume designer about the weight and meaning of a single garment, from a singer unraveling the emotional core of a challenging role, or from a stage director mapping the journey from concept to opening night. It’s about the problem-solving, the collaboration, and the occasional happy accident that defines a season. Each episode connects you to the living, breathing process of opera, focusing on the people whose dedicated work transforms a New Mexico evening into something unforgettable. Listen for stories about musical discovery, artistic risk, and the sheer logistical marvel of mounting world-class productions against a backdrop of southwestern skies. Produced by The Santa Fe Opera, this series is an essential companion for anyone curious about the alchemy that happens when countless disciplines converge to create a single, powerful story in song.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 31

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