Dioneo Opera Company presents a fully staged new production of Viktor Ullmann's satire on fascism – a masterpiece of the Holocaust by Ullmann and librettist Peter Kien is a political satire written in the Terezin concentration camp towards the end of WWII.Often described as a 'legend in four scenes' rather than an opera, the score is rich in musical references and employs an unusual combination of instruments.Incorporating sung and spoken sections with dance, the work contemplates the horror of finding no release from suffering in a world without death.Directed by Max Hoehn.(Terezin housed a fertile artistic community where performances were permitted.However, a rehearsal of'The Emperor of Atlantis'was overheard by members of the SS, who recognised in the principal character of Emperor Overall, a satirical portrayal of Adolf Hitler.The piece was immediately banned and the composer, librettist and musicians transported with their families to Auschwitz, where Ullmann and Kien died some months later. Fortunately the work survived.)
