The Bald Soprano

A married couple are sitting cosily in front of the fireplace. We learn that they live near London and are called Smith. Later, they are joined by the Martins, who are surprised to discover that they are husband and wife. The fire chief and the maid Mary also already know each other, and the bald prima donna – she always styles her hair the same way! Eugène Ionesco’s first play The Bald Soprano from 1950 inaugurated the ‘Theatre of the Absurd’. With its assemblage of domestic scenes featuring meaningless banter, situational comedy, pseudo-clichés and non-sequiturs, Ionesco created a witty “anti-play” full of dazzling linguistic acrobatics. In collaboration with the playwright, Italian composer Luciano Chailly (1920-2002) wrote the libretto for the opera of the same name. His score captures the character of the protagonists and their relationships by means of a quintet of plucked instruments – featherlight, vain and dance-like – as well as serene string quintet and a rather coarse wind quintet. Semper Zwei now presents the German premiere of this opera rarity, which was first performed in Vienna in 1986.