Operadagen Rotterdam 2017 Announces Details of Programme

The full programme for Operadagen Rotterdam 2017 launched today as the online ticket sales start. Rotterdam is set to be Europe's epicentre for new opera and music theatre for the 12th time in a row from 12 through 21 May 2017. Audiences of all ages can enjoy classic works in a modern form as well as international show-stoppers, up-and-coming talents, and mesmerizing multimedia projects. The festival offers a rich and varied programme including 10 world premieres, 12 Dutch premieres, and over 100 performances all around the city as well as at the major Rotterdam theatres.

Operadagen Rotterdam will explore the brand-new festival theme 'Lost & Found' over the coming four years. The 2017 instalment 'Departures' contains narratives about crossing borders and the search for a new identity. Ancient themes that are more topical than ever. Ivo van Hove's Diary of one who disappeared opens the festival on Friday 12 May. Other highlights include L'Orfeo by Ensemble Cappella Mediterranea at de Doelen and Ragazze Quartet's project Shorelines at the Rotterdamse Schouwburg.

New programmes
At the 2017 festival various new programmes are connected through a common thread. Special family performances are part of the Kids & Family section for the first time this year. Multimedia projects and art installations are grouped under Image & Sound. Rotterdam's fantastic scenery will be used as a backdrop to maximum effect as performances take place in every corner of the city in major cultural venues as well as on squares, in living rooms, on the roof of the Bijenkorf department store, and on the former railway station turned hotspot Hofbogen. And even in a fitness centre! Additional features this year are the Opera cycling tour taking in various mini performances in Rotterdam-Zuid and an exciting night walk in the same area followingNachtschade: Aubergine at the Nieuwe Luxor Theater.

Also new is GALA!, a festive night for music theatre makers from all over the world putting extraordinary artists in the spotlight including the Belgian band Dez Mona and Nora Fischer. Other festival guests are the award-winning Dutch author Connie Palmen (who introduces the performance Uwe Leipe Mastdramnis) and the renowned writer Jeroen Olyslaegers, expert on the famous Flemish novelist Louis Paul Boon. He will provide an introduction to Minuet (Menuet), based on Boon's book.

Festival traditions
Old and familiar highlights return to the festival, including the First Night at the Opera (the celebratory opening at the Rotterdamse Schouwburg), the Paradijskerk concert, and the singalong fest Van Smartlap tot Opera. Director Arlon Luijten, who created the Parsifal trilogy over the past three years, continues another festival tradition. He developed the city opera Ring of Resilience, inspired by Wagner's The Ring of the Nibelung. Visitors are invited to brainstorm about its gestation throughout the festival.

Ticket sales
Enjoy Operadagen Rotterdam to your heart's content by taking in several performances. Order a double bill (two performances) or package deal (three performances) and you'll get a handsome discount. This year, too, you can buy the special Operadagen Pass. After a once-off payment of €40 (solo / single person) or €70 (duo / two people) you can order tickets for just €10 per performance. Tickets are available online or by phoning the box office of the Rotterdamse Schouwburg +31 (0)10 4118110.

About Operadagen Rotterdam
Operadagen (Opera Days) Rotterdam is an international opera and music theatre festival in Rotterdam, The Netherlands, that attracted over 23,000 visitors in 2016. The festival presents contemporary, innovative, and ground-breaking productions by leading international makers as well as young adventurous talent. Please see our website for more information about the upcoming edition.

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