Lehár: Das Land des Lächelns (DVD) – Piotr Beczala

Composer: Franz Lehár
Artists: Piotr Beczala, Julia Kleiter, Rebeca Olvera, Spencer Lang, Cheyne Davidson, Martin Zysset, Philharmonia Zürich, Chor der Oper Zürich
Conductor: Fabio Luisi
Director: Andreas Homoki
Format: NTSC
Language: German
Subtitles: German, English, French, Japanese, Korean
Region: All Regions
Number of Discs: 1
Studio: Accentus
DVD Release Date: June 29, 2018
Run Time: 130 minutes

“Always smile and always be cheerful, always satisfied, no matter what happens, smile in spite of your sorrows and a thousand aches and pains,” sings Prince Sou-Chong, introducing the fundamentally melancholic tone of Das Land des Lächelns (The Land of Smiles).

For the new production of this operetta, world class tenor Piotr Beczala returned to the Opernhaus Zürich as Sou-Chong. He has an equal partner in Julia Kleiter, who plays the role of Lisa. Homoki lets the plot take place in a Paris Variété theater from the 1920s, complete with show staircase and heavy curtains. To emphasize the operatic elements, he condensed the piece, cutting several secondary roles and shortening dialogues. Recorded at the Opernhaus Zürich in June 2017.

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