Jenůfa through the lens of the contemporary world. Co-produced by the Moravian Theatre Olomouc and NdB

27 June 2024, 2:00
Jenůfa through the lens of the contemporary world. Co-produced by the Moravian Theatre Olomouc and NdB

This timeless story of jealousy, forgiveness and hope will be performed by the Moravian Theatre Olomouc Opera and Operetta Ensemble in its staging of Jenůfa, co-produced with the National Theatre Brno as part of the Janáček Brno Festival. The production team, headed by director Veronika Kos Loulová and conductor Anna Novotná Pešková, will present Jenůfa in its original version from 1904. They will be inspired by stories of clients of the Mum’s Smile (Úsměv mámy) organisation.

The opera Jenůfa, which is to be performed in its first version from 1904 in the Mark Audus edition, is celebrating one hundred and twenty years since its first performance. The new production gives us an updated look at this world-famous opera drama and opens up a number of themes. "Issues of motherhood, responsibility, rebellion, as well as love, strength and hope, are more important to the production than the rural setting. Janáček took his most important plot elements from Preissová, and the new production brings his work into the present day and asks whether we have moved on," explains dramaturge Marta Ljubková. The result will be an operatic work that shows all the respect Janáček's haunting music deserves, but with the ambition to showcase a slice of the contemporary world, where issues such as the difficult postpartum period are openly discussed. The creative team, which enjoys bringing resonant social themes into the world of opera, therefore approached clients of the Olomouc branch of the Mum’s Smile organisation. The aim is to naturally incorporate their authentic stage existence into a libretto from the era of realism and timeless music. The performance will be staged as part of the Janáček Brno 2024 festival on 20 and 21 November 2024 at 7:00 p.m. at the Mahen Theatre.

On Sunday, 23 June, an introductory workshop was held at the Moravian Theatre, where the organisation's clients - mothers who have struggled with postpartum depression or other psychological problems associated with motherhood - and the creators met for the first time. "In order to give them a better idea of what goes into putting on and rehearsing a production like this, we prepared an acting workshop where they had a go at performing two specific scenes from Jenůfa," said Veronika Kos Loulová, head of the Olomouc Opera and director of the production, adding that the clients now have time to set down their thoughts on this experience and consider whether they want to perform in the production.

Rehearsals for the première, which will take place on 15 November at the Moravian Theatre Olomouc, will begin in September. The production will then be performed at the Janáček Brno 2024 festival. "We’re already aware that the rehearsals will be somewhat atypical for an opera, but the workshop alone has enriched our work. In theatre, you act out what is written in the script. But here we are suddenly feeling the power of authentic testimonies, real experiences that are not faked," said Kos Loulová.

Besides the standard rehearsals for the orchestra, soloists and choir, certain parts of the preparation process will need to be adapted to the needs of the mothers that will be performing in the production. The rehearsals will be divided into shorter blocks, and the plan is to offer babysitting. Psychotherapists from Mum’s Smile will also be there at the rehearsals.

By working with the Moravian Theatre, the representatives of the Mum’s Smile organisation would like to raise awareness of this issue beyond the target group. "Many of our clients find great courage and strength in themselves to share their experience and pass on their story in an effort to help other women in a similar situation. For us, the workshop was a great way to break away from everyday life. Seeing the opera's creators at work was a truly rewarding experience and literally a look "behind the scenes". In places, the work demanded a lot of attention and the clients spent quite a long time processing the experience. Although theatre is still something shrouded in mystery for us, the creative team will continue to work on and clarify exactly how we will be involved. We’re curious and really excited about it," said Renata Banášová, a clinical psychologist and psychotherapist working with Mum’s Smile, about the workshop and the need to spread awareness.

This will be helped along by a feature-length documentary about the making of the production, being prepared by director Tereza Tara. She has previously explored the themes of motherhood and postpartum psychological problems in her documentaries and is now interested in connecting them with the world of art and theatre.

Mahen Theatre/ photo archive

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