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Overview

Synopsis

Exhausted and overworked, when Death (Der Tod) hears Kaiser Overall’s decree that everyone must fight until there is no one left, he quits. He breaks his sword and removes the power of death. Try as they might, mortally wounded soldiers everywhere can no longer die. Without the power of death, Kaiser Overall begins to lose his grip over the people; Soldiers and Maidens can fall in love rather than shoot each other.

But this cannot continue. Men and women everywhere are left suspended between life and death; unable to die, but too injured to continue living. Kaiser Overall faces Death himself, and asks him to take up his sword again. Death agrees, on the condition that Kaiser Overall is sacrificed in exchange.

Der Kaiser von Atlantis is a skillfully worked parable, and a plea for Death to be allowed to happen at its set time, rather than according to the schedule of war.

Show Information

Libretto
Peter Kien
Based on the Play/Book/Film
‘Die Kluge Bauerntochter’ from Grimm’s Fairy Tales
Category
Opera
Age Guidance
Thirteen Plus (PG-13)
Number of Acts
1
First Produced
1974
Genres
Dark Comedy, Satire, Horror, Fairy Tale/Fantasy
Settings
Fantasy/Imaginary, Multiple Settings
Time & Place
Atlantis, A war zone
Cast Size
small
Orchestra Size
Medium
Dancing
Some Dance
Ideal For
College/University, Professional Opera, Small Cast, Mostly Male Cast, Includes Mature Adult, Adult, Young Adult Characters

Context

Plot

Characters

Name Part Size Gender Vocal Part

Kaiser Overall

Lead

Male

Baritone

Der Tod / Death

Lead

Male

Bass

Harlekin

Lead

Male

Tenor

Der Trommler / The Drummer

Lead

Either Gender

Mezzo-Soprano, Contralto

Der Lautsprecher / Loudspeaker

Supporting

Male

Bass, Bass-Baritone

Ein Soldat / A soldier

Supporting

Male

Tenor

Bubikopf

Supporting

Female

Soprano

Songs

Prologue

  • Melodrama ‘Hallo, hallo’ - Lautsprecher

Scene 1

Scene 2

Scene 3

  • No. 10 Recitative and Trio ‘Wer da? Halt! Steh!’ - Bubikopf, Soldat, Trommler
  • No. 11 Aria ‘Ist’s wahr, daß es Landschaften gibt’ - Bubikopf
  • No. 11b Duet ‘Komm, komm, fort von hier’ - Trommler, Bubikopf
  • No. 11c Aria and Trio ‘Trommel, Trommel dröhnt’ - Trommler, Bubikopf, Soldat
  • No. 12 Finale ‘Schau, die Wolken’ - Bubikopf, Soldat
  • No. 13 Dance-Intermezzo ‘Die lebenden Toten’ (The Living Dead)

Scene 4

  • Recitative ‘Hallo, hallo, der oberste General’ - Lautsprecher, Overall, Harlekin
  • No. 14 Scene ‘Wir sind um einen Kreutzer Süßes’ - Harlekin, Trommler
  • No. 15 Trio ‘Funf, sechs, sieben, acht’ -Overall, Harlekin, Trommler
  • No. 16 Aria of Death ‘Ich bin der Tod’ - Tod, Trommler, Harlekin, Overall
  • No. 17 The Emperor’s Farewell ‘Von allem, was geschieht’ -Overall
  • No. 18 Finale ‘Komm Tod, du unser werter Gast’ - Bubikopf, Trommler, Harlekin, Lautsprecher

A song with an asterisk (*) before the title indicates a dance number; a character listed in a song with an asterisk (*) by the character's name indicates that the character exclusively serves as a dancer in this song, which is sung by other characters.

Monologues

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Scenes

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Guide Written By:

Wendy Silvester

Wendy Silvester

Singer and vocal coach based in the UK.