11.0618 PM, Noblessner foundry OPERA: TWO HEADSTimo Steiner’s opera (premiere) Libretto Maarja Kangro Artist Pille Jänes Director Mart Koldits (Von Krahl Theatre) Choreographer Renate Valme Concertmaster Zoja Hertz Juuli Lill (mezzo-soprano, Estonian National Opera ) Oliver Kuusik (tenor, Estonian National Opera) René Soom (baritone, Estonian National Opera) Olari Viikholm (bass, Estonian National Male Choir) Nargenfestival's choir ERSO (Estonian State Symphony Orchestra) Conductor Tõnu Kaljuste The plot of the opera is the research and experiments actually conducted in the 1950s by a Russian scientist Vladimir Demikhov, who transplanted the second head to twenty dogs to research the possibilities of surgery operations. However, the first human heart transplantation (supposedly one of the aims in Demikhov's experiments) was carried out by Christian Barnard from South Africa in 1967, forestalling his rival from Soviet Russia. The opera with four personages 'Two heads' has been commissioned by Nargenfestival and its performances are events of the program 'Tallinn - European Capital of Culture 2011'. |
