Admin

Organization

Singer

Tenor

Piotr Beczała

Prince Sou-Chong

Soprano

Julia Kleiter

Lisa

Rebeca Olvera

Spencer Lang

Count Gustav von Potterstein

Baritone

Cheyne Davidson

Tschang

Martin Zysset

Eunuch

Conductor

Fabio Luisi

Stage director

Andreas Homoki

Costume designer

Wolfgang Gussmann

Susana Mendoza

Set designer

Stage design assistance

Thomas Bruner

Lighting designer

Franck Evin

Video designer

Tieni Burkhalter

Chorus master

Ernst Raffelsberger

Choreographer

Arturo Gama

Dramaturge

Kathrin Brunner

Opernhaus Zürich

Others

Chor der Oper Zürich

Orchestra

Philharmonia Zürich

Statistenverein am Opernhaus Zürich

German

Das Land des Lächelns -  (The Land of Smiles)

Zurich

Switzerland

“Always smile and always be cheerful, always satisfied, no matter what happens, smile in spite of your sorrows and a thousand aches and pains,” sings Prince Sou-Chong, thus introducing the fundamentally melancholic tone of “Das Land des Lächelns” (The Land of Smiles), which even has a tragic ending in store. For the new production of this operetta, world-class tenor Piotr Beczala returned to the Opernhaus Zürich as Sou-Chong. He has an equal partner in Julia Kleiter, who plays the role of Lisa. Fabio Luisi and Andreas Homoki also know that the genre of operetta requires particular care – which is why they have assumed personal responsibility for this production.

Homoki lets the plot take place in a Paris Variété theater from the 1920s, complete with show staircase and heavy curtains. To emphasize the operatic elements, he condensed the piece, cutting several secondary roles and shortening dialogues.

Opernhaus

"We keep on smiling, we always stay cheery," sings Prince Sou-Chong in the introduction to the Franz Lehár operetta Das Land des Lächelns (The Land of Smiles), "always content, no matter what happens. We smile through the pain and a thousand torments." Like Puccini in Madame Butterfly, Lehár situates the action in Asia, dealing with themes of exoticism and the complexities in trying to reconcile divergent cultural traditions. World-renowned tenor Piotr Beczala returns to the Zurich Opera House in the role of Sou-Chong, alongside the marvelous Julia Kleiter as Lisa. Maestro Fabio Luisi conducts the Philharmonia Zürich in the delightful score by Lehár, while Andreas Homoki's staging pops with striking set pieces and vibrant colors.

In 1912 Vienna and China, countess Lisa marries Chinese prince Sou-Chong and accompanies him back to his homeland, despite the apprehensions of her friends and family. But when she finds herself unable to adjust to her husband's culture—especially its practice of polygamy—and begins to feel imprisoned within her palace, her love curdles into hatred. The custom, however, must be respected: keep on smiling, always stay cheery...

Photos