Katya Kabanova

Opera in seven paintings with prologyLibretto: Leoš Janáček according to the Tempest by Aleksandra OstrowskiPremiere: 23/11/1921, BrnoPremiere: 17/01/2027Original Czech language version with Polish and English subtitles

The story of Katya Kabanova may seem at first glance extremely simple. The girl, not very fulfilled in marriage and tormented by her mother-in-law, gets involved in an affair, and then, under the weight of guilt, confesses her betrayal to her husband and commits suicide. This brief synopsis does not fully capture the psychological complexity of the opera.

Leoš Janáček, one of the most fascinating and distinct artists of the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, began his greatest operatic successes as a man of sixty. Most of his stage works focus on unobvious female characters, it is no different with Katya Kabanova. The creation of this work had a meeting with Kamila Stösslova, which did not turn into a traditional romance, but certainly began to have a strong influence on Janáček. Stösslová became the composer's muse, and Katya became one of her musical portraits. It so happened that Janáček found a Czech translation of Alexander Ostrovsky's popular Russian drama Storm at the time, just before starting work on the adaptation of the play for libretto, the composer also had the opportunity to hear Madama Butterfly, whose title character was associated with Stösslova. In this way, one of the most delicate characters in the opera of the 20th century was created.

Katia is a gentle woman by nature, extremely fragile, which is also emphasized by the contrast with the principled and possessive mother-in-law who is an equally important character in the opera. The misadaptation of the title heroine is the main theme of the work — there are no clearly evil characters in it, the outside world does not give any of the characters a chance to develop their wings. Katya Kabanova is certainly one of Janáček's most pessimistic works, filled with music of lyrical power and great intensity, as it stems from feelings directly experienced by the composer. Nevertheless, this opera is not only filled with fatalism, but is filled with empathy for the title heroine torn between morality and lust.

In the vision of Kornél Mundruczó, an artist who works equally willingly in opera, drama and film, Katya Kabanova is as contemporary a story as possible. The director seeks a specifically local history, combining it with the post-communist heritage of Central and Eastern Europe, as well as a story about a world that, despite its apparent openness, is dominated by the need to conform to strictly defined social norms.

Choir and Orchestra of the Grand Theatre - National Opera