MONIQUE KRÜS: GODS VIDEOTHEEK

MONIQUE-KRUS---GODS-VIDEOTHEEK

Opera: Gods Videotheek
Composer: Monique Krüs
Libretto: Irma Achten (libretto)
Language: English

Cast: Monique Krüs (Sofie Vandam), Wil van der Meer (Joseph Kiss, manager of God's videotheque), Klara Uleman (Hanna), Monique Krüs en Martijn Sanders (Leo Fulca, a scientist), Do van Stek (God), Magogo Chamber Orchestra o.l.v. Arjan Tien

Regie: Corina van Eijk
Commisoned & produced: Opera Spanga
Wereldpremiere: 25 juli 2007 (subsequent performances July/August)

Intro

Copernicus' discovery that the earth was not the center of the universe shook the very foundations of the Christian world of that era. But what is it that got shaken loose? The position of human kind stood its ground. Human beings continued to consider themselves to be at the center.

In this 2007 opera by Dutch composer Monique Krüs (1959, Utrecht) a number of ethiscal questions are raised: Is our position a pleasant one? Is it a legitimate one? Is our power proportional and is the proportion bearable for our environment?   God's Videotheque deals with morally charged themes such as experiments on animals for medicine development and the superiority of human life above other live. This heavy topic is scaled down to a light version by presenting it with humor and accessible music. The stage is dominated by a gigantic video screen, which causes the illusion that the meadows outside run directly into the tent, which covers the stage.

Plot synopsis

The three main characters, attending a xenotransplantation conference, lose their lives in a violent manner right at the beginning of the opera. They experience their death as an eternal vacuum, a vacuum which is filled by Josef Kiss, who appears to them in images at the beginning. He is in a video store where on an enormous number of tapes their lives are recorded image by image. Mercilessly he shows them fragments of their existence. The three main characters Sofie, a Christian formalist (Monique Krüs), Leo, a heart specialist (Martijn Sanders), and Hanna, a student of ethics (Klara Uleman) are confronted with their lives after they have died.

They are certainly less than charmed by what they see on film. In golden suit and walking on golden sneakers, the videotheque keeper shows religious Sofie the sweet caresses that she scorned.

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Sofie's Lament - Monique Krüs (Sofie)

Next he shows animal lover Hanna how she merciless killed countless moths and scientist Leo is confronted with his lethal experiments carried out on pigs.

The confrontation with their lives, where in this case the animals (i.e. the pigs) have to pay the price, leads to hot-tempered tension among them. The surprise of the evening is God, who appears in a pink Chanel cocktail dress.

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DUET: Our death is our death
Monique Krüs (Sofie), Klara Uleman (Hanna)

Video trailer
De wereldpremière van Gods Videotheek vond plaats op 25 juli 2007 in Spanga.

Opera Spanga aims at bringing the medium of opera to life, not just by creating fresh works, but also by employing the power of the medium in dealing with themes which are felt to be necessary. Opera Spanga considers the creation of new repertory to be an important job.

DOWNLOAD FULL VIDEO GODS VIDEOTHEEK HIER

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PRESS REVIEWS:

'Spanga has its own and unique status thanks to the always interesting and special style of directing of Corina van Eijk, here exploited again successfully. Monique Krüs, who performs one of the leadroles herself, wrote the appealing music.'

(NRC Handelsblad)

'A very entertaining performance.'

(Trouw)

'In the wet meadow of farmer De Wolff there is a trumpet player practicing his triads. From a big tent a bit further one can hear the delicate mingling of a violin with a soprano, although the main impression is definitely the smell of barbeques with grilled fish, goose and pig... Opera Spanga celebrates. It is the 15th edition of the Festival is being celebrated with the world premiere of God's Videotheque and, after the intermission, also with the opera movie after Saint-Saëns Samson and Dalila as directed by Van Eijk in 1995.'

(Volkskrant / Bela Lutmer)

'The libretto of Irma Achten addresses quite a few human and animal ethics and Krüs has found very appealing music with it.'

(Dutch Northen Daily)

'In a contemporary yet understandable musical language the story is told up-tempo.'

(Friesch Daily)

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