The dreamer realizes that they are next to a woman lying on a bed, and she quietly confesses to them that she will soon die. This surreal encounter with the woman doesn't faze the dreamer, and they ask her when she will die and whether she has to die. She explains that she cannot change her fate and requests that the dreamer bury her after her inevitable death. The dreamer is instructed to dig her grave with a large shell, bury her in it, and erect a gravestone with a fragment of a fallen star. Finally, they are told to wait in a hundred-year vigil for her self-proclaimed return. The dreamer follows her instructions and begins to count the days as the sun moves from east to west. After some time, they wonder whether the woman has betrayed them. Unexpectedly, a white lily begins to grow from the fresh grave. At the end of its blooming period, they understand that 100 years have passed.
When reading this text, you might ask yourself: "Whose unconscious is it?". This is the summary of Japanese writer Natsume Soseki's (1867-1916) first dream from his short story "10 Nights of Dreams" (1908), which will form the basis for our 49-minute (7x7) multidisciplinary immersive opera "Mugen". The character's symbolic journey forms the emotional core
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The dreamer realizes that they are next to a woman lying on a bed, and she quietly confesses to them that she will soon die. This surreal encounter with the woman doesn't faze the dreamer, and they ask her when she will die and whether she has to die. She explains that she cannot change her fate and requests that the dreamer bury her after her inevitable death. The dreamer is instructed to dig her grave with a large shell, bury her in it, and erect a gravestone with a fragment of a fallen star. Finally, they are told to wait in a hundred-year vigil for her self-proclaimed return. The dreamer follows her instructions and begins to count the days as the sun moves from east to west. After some time, they wonder whether the woman has betrayed them. Unexpectedly, a white lily begins to grow from the fresh grave. At the end of its blooming period, they understand that 100 years have passed.
When reading this text, you might ask yourself: "Whose unconscious is it?". This is the summary of Japanese writer Natsume Soseki's (1867-1916) first dream from his short story "10 Nights of Dreams" (1908), which will form the basis for our 49-minute (7x7) multidisciplinary immersive opera "Mugen". The character's symbolic journey forms the emotional core of "Mugen", while its themes of death, love, longing and the ambiguous syntheses of time and space create a rich character.
CREDITS:
- Music & Concept: Paul Taro Schmidt
- Dramaturgy: Leonard Lampert
- Choreography: Ivana Balabnova
- Dancers: Coko de Windt & Oscar Alfredo
- Scenography: Julian Holz
- Costume Design/Make-up: Carolina Mistzella
- Interactive Visual Art: Weidi Zhang
- Art Design/Poster: Olga Antonova
- Light Design/Programming: Chi Him Chik
- Immersive Sound Programming & Mixing Engineer : Daniel Eaton & Jonas Füllemann
- Photography: Ardennes Fatimah Ornati & Paul Taro Schmidt
- Videography: Benjamat Hess, & Oliver Kimber
- Cinematography: Juan Pablo Salazar
- Project Manager: Olena Iegorova
MUSICIANS:
- Narration: Eri Oshikawa
- Sho: Naomi Sato
- Vocals: Salome Cavegn & Aleksandra Sucur
- Double Bass: Azuna Oishi
- Percussion: Barbara Ribeiro
- Voices: Ardennes Fahtima Ornati, Dmitry Smirnov, Aleksandra Sucur, Chi Him Chik, Saiko Sasaki, Stephan Teuwissen, Olga Antonova
- Strings: Max Baillie, Alessandro Ruisi, Gretta Mutlu, Oli Lanford, Hélène Clement, Anne Beilby, Kirsten Jenson, Colin Alexander
- Music Contractor: Eleanor Cawser, Susie Gillis
- Recorded: John Barrett
- Pro-Tools Operator: Marta Di Nozzi
- Mixing: Jakob Eisenbach
with generous support from Kanton Zurich, SIS foundation, Graf Fond, & Momento Stiftung
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