Wozzeck is running, always running, with his shadow in pursuit.

WOZZECK

He is poor, and he is weary. He is used, and used up. He is a brute, ruled by brutes.

And now his mind is imploding.

Berg’s fascinating opera is a portrait of a ravaged man, drawn with vivid clarity through unsettling music and sharp, structured scenes.

One of the most exciting visual artists of our generation, William Kentridge, directs and illustrates this extraordinary production, a collaboration between Opera Australia, the Metropolitan Opera, Salzburg Festival and the Canadian Opera Company.

Kentridge’s haunting illustrations offer a window into the carnage of Wozzeck’s world. Charcoal drawings fill the stage, frenetic scribbles are illuminated and then erased, as we wonder, with Wozzeck, what is real.

At its Salzburg premiere, The New York Times recorded the audience “seemed stunned at the end, yet grateful”. The Telegraphcalled it “completely enthralling ★★★★★”, the Financial Times labelled it “a breathtaking reassessment of Berg’s masterpiece… a work of art across many genres.”

After his triumph in King Roger in 2017, baritone Michael Honeyman tackles another major 20th-century title role, alongside a talented cast led by Andrea Molino as conductor.

Running time: approximately 1 hour & 40 minutes, with no interval.
Sung in German with English surtitles.
A co-production between Salzburg Festival, Opera Australia, the Metropolitan Opera, New York, and the Canadian Opera Company, Toronto.

JOAN SUTHERLAND THEATRE, SYDNEY OPERA HOUSE

JANUARY 25 – FEBRUARY 15, 2019