Exile

Opera

Opera in 15 pictures by Taner Akyol Libretto by Can Dündar World premiere
In different languages with German and English surtitles

What happens when you have to leave your home country from one day to the next? Can you put down new roots in foreign soil? Does the hope of return sustain you - or does it kill you? Can and should a new beginning bring joy? The musical theater piece "Exile" poses these existential questions through the personal story of Turkish journalist Can Dündar, who has been living in Germany since 2016 following critical reporting and an assassination attempt. Based on this biographical experience, he developed a multilingual libretto together with the Mannheim-based dramaturge Eszter Orbán, which combines personal experiences of exile with literary testimonies from a wide range of eras and cultures. In six languages - German, Turkish, Russian, Spanish, Italian and French - universal stories of flight and displacement are created. Composer Taner Akyol, himself rooted in Turkish, Kurdish and German culture, writes a modern, vocally influenced opera that builds on Western orchestral traditions, but to which his artistic knowledge of non-European musical traditions lends particular emotional depth. Director András Dömötör stages this multi-layered exile opera as a moving testimony to timeless human experiences: An artistic bridge between the fates of displaced persons from all eras.