Final rehearsals underway for Pärt and Wilson's collaborative production
This week sees the commencement of a second period of rehearsals for Arvo Pärt and Robert Wilson's musical theatre production "Adam's Passion", which is set to debut at the Noblessner Foundry in Tallinn on May 12.
The international premiere of "Adam's Passion" coincides with Pärt's 80th birthday as well as the 2015 Year of Music in Estonia, with performances of the production to take place at the Noblessner Foundry from May 12-16 as a result of a collaboration between the State Concert Institute (Eesti Kontsert) and the Milano-based production company Change Performing Arts (CPA).
The production crew, consisting of Wilson, his international team, composer Arvo Pärt and musical director and composer Tõnu Kaljuste, are working to ensure the production's final, coherent form prior to the premiere. According to Wilson, visualizing and dramatizing Pärt's music is not a simple task. "From the beginning, my work has been and remains to be non-interpretive theater. The interpretation is for you, the public – it's not the responsibility for me, the actor or the musician,“ Wilson told ERR.
According to musical director and composer Tõnu Kaljuste, the production is a unique interpretation of Pärt's music and its grand thematic concerns. "The Noblessner Foundry is as if custom-tailored for the performance of Pärt's music, reminiscent of a church's splendor in its acoustics."
The collaborative production is expected to put Estonia in international spotlight. "The international premiere at the Noblessner Foundry, a documentary and concert film as well as planned tie-in tours to leading festivals, will present Tallinn as an attractive travel destination alongside Arvo Pärt's music and its birthplace to tens of millions of people globally,“ affirmed Hanno Tomberg, CEO of Enterprise Estonia (EAS).
The production intertwines Pärt's previous musical works "Adam's Lament", "Tabula Rasa" and "Miserere" with "Sequentiae", a new piece composed specifically for the show. "Adam's Passion" is performed by composer Tõnu Kaljuste, the Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir, the Tallinn Chamber Orchestra, various soloists and actors, as well as students from theatre and dance schools.
Robert Wilson is regarded as a giant of contemporary theater and one of the founding figures of avant-garde theater. He has been at the forefront of the global theater arena since his 1976 collaboration with the American composer Philip Glass in "Einstein on the Beach“.
The premiere is followed by an international tour, with Jüri Leiten of Eesti Kontsert noting the production's anticipated attendance of 30 impresarios worldwide. The production is also the subject of a documentary and concert film, expected to reach audiences of 50 million viewers globally. The film is being made as a co-production of Eesti Konsert, CPA, ERR and renowned music film production company Accentus Music.
Editor: A. Kaer