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Philip Glass’s The Fall of the House of Usher, a chamber opera based on the famous short story by Edgar Allan Poe, has an intriguing plot full of obliqueness and mystery, the climate of a hypnotic dream, impending destruction and doom. The composer’s trance music, wellknown from his film soundtracks (Koyaanisquatsi, Powaqqatsi, Mishima), seemingly monotonous, obsessive, and ignoring any dramatic aspects, turns out to provide surprisingly good material for the opera stage. Added to this are some good ideas from the director, who rejects the gothic setting, moves the action to an “ordinary” modern-day home, and focuses on the characters’ neurotic psyche, making the whole story even more gripping and mysterious. Barbara Wysocka received a Polityka Passport award for directing The Fall of the House of Usher. The production became a sensation of the Territories cycle in which the TW-PNO presents operas and ballets relatively unknown in Poland in the most interesting and innovative formats. 

TERYTORIA (TERRITORIES). A series of meetings with contemporary music - meetings in which we try to discover and sketch a new image of opera. The genre is changing its definition today, conquering new territories, drawing new meanings, proposing a new aesthetic. In this cycle we present the greatest works of contemporary music alongside debuts of Polish composers, works that are completely unknown next to classics of the avant-garde, debuts of Polish directors juxtaposed with productions staged by top European names. Opera is alive, doing well, and winking at us with Fenics’ cybernetic eye.

Photo: Krzysztof Bieliński
Poster for the production, designed by Adam Żebrowski 

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