| Description |
The emergence of opera in the early Baroque or Mannerist (Sýkora 2011) period was closely tied to the carnival season and commedia dell'arte. Some works by the "operatic Shakespeare," Claudio Monteverdi, were premiered during the carnival season (e.g., The Coronation of Poppea and others). In my presentation, I will open the question of whether or in what form the performative elements of Carnival, such as carnality, eroticism, or even brutality, permeate contemporary opera productions. The analysis draws mostly on Mikhail Bakhtin's theory of Carnival (1975), Joseph Kerman's (e.g., 2008), Silke Leopold (2002, 2017), and Ellen Rosand's (1991, 2007) analyses of Baroque opera's dramaturgy, and also on Linda and Michael Hutcheon's perspective approaching opera as the "art of dying" (2009). The paper focuses mostly on recent Czech productions, such as The Coronation of Poppea, directed by Tomáš Ondřej Pilař (Pilsen 2020) and Vladimír John (Brno, 2023), respectively, taking into consideration also foreign productions (e.g. C. Bieito's, Barcelona, 2023). The analysis specifically explores how the productions of Baroque opera reinterpret carnivalesque elements in their staging, blending historical authenticity with contemporary performative strategies. Also, the interplay between the carnivalesque and the “sublime” is examined, considering how these dynamics resonate with modern audiences. The analysis raises the question of what these carnivalesque elements bring to today's productions – do they enrich the narrative, support or disrupt traditional interpretations, or serve other functions? Additionally, it seeks to determine whether these contemporary productions draw on specific stereotypes or conventions in their approach to staging Baroque opera, potentially shaping the audience's perception of the genre.
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