Die Fledermaus
2014
By Johann Strauss
Die Fledermaus, with its intoxicating and effervescent music, has been part of the standard operatic repertory since its premiere in 1874. Based on a vaudeville play, Le réveillon, by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy, Die Fledermaus is the story of revenge, seduction and mistaken identities. A comic masterpiece, its elegant frivolities and confusions of all kinds provide a hilarious vehicle for some of the most captivating music ever written. The opera takes place in Vienna and its music is permeated by the rhythm of the Viennese waltz, no surprise as its composer, Johann Strauss, Jr., is fondly referred to as “The Waltz King.”