The Navigator (opera)
The Navigator is an opera by Liza Lim to a libretto by Patricia Sykes. The work had its world premiere at the Judith Wright Centre of Contemporary Arts as part of the Brisbane Festival 2008 on 30 July 2008.[1] It lasts for about 100 minutes without an interval.
The work was developed during Lim's stay in 2007/2008 in Berlin; on 9 March 2008, excerpts were performed with the ELISION ensemble conducted by Simon Hewett at the MaerzMusik Festival, part of the Berliner Festspiele.[2][3]
Theme
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The Navigator evokes stories from the great Indian epic Mahabharata and the romance of Tristan und Isolde, in its telling of how people risk everything in journeying towards unity and/or transformation, questioning the contingency of living only one life in one world.
— from the program notes:[1]
Roles
| Role | Voice type | Premiere cast, 30 July 2008 Conductor: Manuel Nawri |
|---|---|---|
| The Beloved | soprano | Talise Trevigne |
| The Navigator | countertenor | Andrew Watts |
| The Fool | baritone | Omar Ebrahim |
| Angel of History | soprano | Deborah Kayser |
| The Crone | bass-baritone | Philip Larson |
| Recorder soloist | Genevieve Lacey | |
| Orchestra | ELISION Ensemble | |
| Director | Barrie Kosky | |
| Set design | Barrie Kosky and Alice Babidge | |
| Costume design | Alice Babidge | |
| Lighting design | Damien Cooper | |
| Sound design | Michael Hewes | |
