PARIS, April 13 – Huge, dense, taxing, with almost all the action taking place in the heart, Wagner’s “Tristan und Isolde” is notoriously difficult to stage. Indeed, the composer himself abandoned his first attempt in Vienna in the early 1860’s after no fewer than 77 rehearsals. Now, in a daring experiment, the Paris National Opera has invited the American video artist Bill Viola to accompany the work with his own visual commentary.
(Photo: l'Opéra National de Paris)
In Pursuit of a Total Art, the Paris Opera Adds Video to 'Tristan und Isolde'
By ALAN RIDING [NY Times, 14 Apr 05]
PARIS, April 13 - Huge, dense, taxing, with almost all the action taking place in the heart, Wagner's "Tristan und Isolde" is notoriously difficult to stage. Indeed, the composer himself abandoned his first attempt in Vienna in the early 1860's after no fewer than 77 rehearsals. Now, in a daring experiment, the Paris National Opera has invited the American video artist Bill Viola to accompany the work with his own visual commentary.
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Mariage mitigé entre la scène et l'image pour "Tristan et Isolde"
Marie-Aude Roux [Le Monde, 13 Apr 05]
Effervescence maximale à l'Opéra-Bastille pour la première de ce Tristan et Isolde attendu comme le Messie, ou plutot la révélation d'une nouvelle Trinité opératique