''Ubu Rex'' is a satirical opera by

Krzysztof Penderecki Krzysztof Eugeniusz Penderecki (; 23 November 1933 – 29 March 2020) was a Polish composer and conductor. His best-known works include '' Threnody to the Victims of Hiroshima'', Symphony No. 3, his '' St Luke Passion'', '' Polish Requiem'', '' ...

, on a

libretto A libretto (From the Italian word , ) is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or Musical theatre, musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to th ...

in German by the composer and Jerzy Jarocki, based on

Alfred Jarry Alfred Jarry (; ; 8 September 1873 – 1 November 1907) was a French Artistic symbol, symbolist writer who is best known for his play ''Ubu Roi'' (1896)'','' often cited as a forerunner of the Dada, Surrealism, Surrealist, and Futurism, Futurist ...

's 1896 play '' Ubu Roi''. It uses models by Offenbach,

Rossini Gioachino Antonio Rossini (29 February 1792 – 13 November 1868) was an Italian composer of the late Classical and early Romantic eras. He gained fame for his 39 operas, although he also wrote many songs, some chamber music and piano p ...

Shostakovich Dmitri Dmitriyevich Shostakovich, group=n (9 August 1975) was a Soviet-era Russian composer and pianist who became internationally known after the premiere of his Symphony No. 1 (Shostakovich), First Symphony in 1926 and thereafter was regarded ...

and Schnittke. The opera was premiered by the

Bavarian State Opera The Bavarian State Opera () is a German opera company based in Munich. Its main venue is the Nationaltheater München, and its orchestra the Bavarian State Orchestra. History The parent ensemble of the company was founded in 1653, under El ...

on 6 July 1991 for the opening of the Munich Opera Festival, conducted by Michael Boder. The Polish premiere was 1993 in Grand Theatre, Łódź, conducted by and directed by Lech Majewski.

History

Penderecki was interested for a long time in an opera based on

's 1896

surrealist Surrealism is an art movement, art and cultural movement that developed in Europe in the aftermath of World War I in which artists aimed to allow the unconscious mind to express itself, often resulting in the depiction of illogical or dreamlike s ...

play '' Ubu Roi'', but realized that the topic of satire of power and corruption was not welcome in the restricted political surroundings he lived in. Over two decades, it was announced several times but then cancelled. Penderecki wrote the German language

together with Jerzy Jarocki. The libretto is a compact version of the play, being faithful to its "exuberantly vulgar vision of a world taken over by the lowest form of bourgeois avarice and greed". The composer labeled the work an

opera buffa Opera buffa (, "comic opera"; : ''opere buffe'') is a genre of opera. It was first used as an informal description of Italian comic operas variously classified by their authors as ''commedia in musica'', ''commedia per musica'', ''dramma bernesc ...

. It was his first and only comic and satirical opera, and uses models by

Jacques Offenbach Jacques Offenbach (; 20 June 18195 October 1880) was a German-born French composer, cellist and impresario. He is remembered for his nearly 100 operettas of the 1850s to the 1870s, and his uncompleted opera ''The Tales of Hoffmann''. He was a p ...

Gioachino Rossini Gioachino Antonio Rossini (29 February 1792 – 13 November 1868) was an Italian composer of the late Classical period (music), Classical and early Romantic music, Romantic eras. He gained fame for his 39 operas, although he also wrote man ...

Dmitri Shostakovich Dmitri Dmitriyevich Shostakovich, group=n (9 August 1975) was a Soviet-era Russian composer and pianist who became internationally known after the premiere of his First Symphony in 1926 and thereafter was regarded as a major composer. Shostak ...

and

Alfred Schnittke Alfred Garrievich Schnittke (24 November 1934 – 3 August 1998) was a Russian composer. Among the most performed and recorded composers of late 20th-century classical music, he is described by musicologist Ivan Moody (composer), Ivan Moody as a ...

. The composer wrote: "To write a comic opera one has to not only have experienced a lot, but also be able to look at these experiences with perspective. One must be able to laugh at oneself, something that cannot be done at the age of thirty." The opera was premiered by the

on 6 July 1991 for the opening of the annual Munich Opera Festival. The score and parts were delivered to the orchestra only on the very day of the premiere. It was staged by the company's

Intendant An intendant (; ; ) was, and sometimes still is, a public official, especially in France, Spain, Portugal, and Latin America. The intendancy system was a centralizing administrative system developed in France. In the War of the Spanish Success ...

, August Everding, and conducted by Michael Boder. The cast was led by the character tenor Robert Tear in the title role,

mezzo-soprano A mezzo-soprano (, ), or mezzo ( ), is a type of classical music, classical female singing human voice, voice whose vocal range lies between the soprano and the contralto voice types. The mezzo-soprano's vocal range usually extends from the A bel ...

Doris Soffel as Mother Ubu,

soprano A soprano () is a type of classical singing voice and has the highest vocal range of all voice types. The soprano's vocal range (using scientific pitch notation) is from approximately middle C (C4) = 261 Hertz, Hz to A5 in Choir, choral ...

Pamela Coburn as Queen Rosamunde. It was not well received by the audience and the press. The opera was published by Schott. ''Ubu Rex'' was given in Poland first in 2003 at the Wielki Theatre in Warsaw, in a performance that was also presented in London, and was recorded. Jacek Kaspszyk conducted chorus and orchestra of the theatre. The opera was produced in Gdansk on the occasion of the composer's 80th birthday in 2013, a production that was also shown that year at the Musikfestspiele Saar in

Kaiserslautern Kaiserslautern (; ) is a town in southwest Germany, located in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate at the edge of the Palatinate Forest. The historic centre dates to the 9th century. It is from Paris, from Frankfurt am Main, 666 kilometers (414 m ...

and in

Saarbrücken Saarbrücken (; Rhenish Franconian: ''Sabrigge'' ; ; ; ; ) is the capital and largest List of cities and towns in Germany, city of the state of Saarland, Germany. Saarbrücken has 181,959 inhabitants and is Saarland's administrative, commerci ...

. The military marches from the opera were arranged as a suite for brass.

Roles

Plot

The opera is a fairly faithful adaption of the Alfred Jarry's play ''Ubu Roi'', which is itself a parody of

William Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 23 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

's tragedies (particularly ''

Macbeth ''The Tragedy of Macbeth'', often shortened to ''Macbeth'' (), is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, estimated to have been first performed in 1606. It dramatises the physically violent and damaging psychological effects of political ambiti ...

'', ''

Hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play. Set in Denmark, the play (the ...

'' and ''

King Lear ''The Tragedy of King Lear'', often shortened to ''King Lear'', is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare. It is loosely based on the mythological Leir of Britain. King Lear, in preparation for his old age, divides his ...

''), combining the subject of bloody power struggles with comedic and absurdist elements. The story centers around the titular Ubu, an ambitious but physically unintimidating and cowardly captain in service to the King Wenceslaus of Poland. Wenceslaus being deeply unpopular as the result of a poorly executed war between Poland and Russia, Ubu's wife convinces him to kill the king and usurp his throne. The power-hungry and amoral Ubu is won over by the plan and quickly sets about recruiting unscrupulous members of the king's court, chiefly fellow captain Bordure. The coup is completely successful, and the king is murdered, but his wife and his son, Crown Prince Bougrelas, escape, although the queen dies shortly after. Ubu uses most of the treasury to shower the common people with wealth and buy their loyalty to his rule with increasingly opulent displays. The new king then sets about slowly isolating and slaughtering many of the other powerful figures in Poland, including the most influential members of the nobility, the judiciary, and the nation's financial ministers and administrators, all to feed his continuing greed for wealth and a desire for complete control of the state. He eventually turns even upon his allies, killing key figures of the revolution and imprisoning Bordure. When even these moves fail to satiate his need for wealth and power, he begins levying crippling taxes upon the common people. Meanwhile, Prince Bougrelas has traveled to Russia and secured an alliance with the Czar, who agrees to use his army to help restore Bougrelas to power. Bougrelas returns to Poland ahead of the army and incites revolution against the now deeply unpopular Ubu. Ubu's wife conspires to steal hidden wealth from the palace, but is thwarted by Bougrelas. Meanwhile, Ubu and his remaining lieutenants engage in a series of battles with the Czar, but despite some initial success, are routed. Ubu returns to the capital where Bordure is executed. Ubu, his wife, and the remainder of their retinue then flee the country on a ship, intending to settle "anywhere worthy enough to accept us".

References

External links

* {{authority control German-language operas Operas by Krzysztof Penderecki Operas 1991 operas Operas based on plays Works based on Ubu Roi Satirical operas Opera world premieres at the Bavarian State Opera