On 5 July, the Oporto premiere of “It’s not over until the soprano dies” will take place, a feminist opera in which the mala voadora company sets out to recreate the endings of operas in which the female characters always die, focusing on these characters and the arias they sing, intensifying them until a vertigo is created.

In this staging by Jorge Andrade, with music by Nuno Côrte-Real played live by the Lisbon Metropolitan Orchestra, it’s clear that, while it’s true that many operas end tragically, the female deaths are characterised by particular cruelty.

“Many operas end badly. Many operas end with deaths. Many operas end with the deaths of women – stabbed, burned, by disease, drowned, poisoned, frightened or of unknown cause. “(…) patriarchy ensures that women are subjected to particular cruelty. Opera, and 19th century opera in particular, allows dangerous women to blaze with emotion on stage for a few short hours – then kills them,” wrote The Guardian’s culture editor Charlotte Higgins.

Aïda, Carmen, Norma, Lucia di Lammermoor, Gilda, Violetta, Verdi’s Leonoras (from “Il Trovatore” and “La Forza del Destino”), Dido, Isolde, Desdemona, Nedda, Tosca, Mélisande, Cio-Cio-San, Kát’a Kabanová, Marie, Lulu, Lucrecia… In “L’Opéra ou la Défaite des femmes” (1979), referring to the classical opera repertoire, philosopher Catherine Clément lists the cruel ways in which women encounter death. Without ceasing to refer to these narratives in their context, we will look at them on stage with the contemporary gaze of the 21st century.

Directed by Jorge Andrade, with assistance from Mariana Magalhães
Arrangements and Musical Direction Nuno Côrte-Real

Performers
Singing Bárbara Barradas, Cátia Moreso, Eduarda Melo, Inês Simões, Joana Seara, Marco Alves dos Santos, Patrícia Quinta, Tiago Matos.
Acting António MV, Carlota Lagido, Cecília Matos Manuel, Danilo da Matta, Francisco Rolo, Mariana Magalhães, Pedro Tavares, Tânia Alves, Vítor d’Andrade.

Lisbon Metropolitan Orchestra

Correpetition Inês Mesquita
Libretto translations Catarina Latino, Jorge Rodrigues, Rosário Corte-Real and Natália Correia, Rui Esteves, João Paulo Santos
Set design by José Capela, assisted by João Fonte and executed by Américo Castanheira
Costumes José Capela, with the support of Carlota Lagido
COLA Sets & Fx Bodies
Lighting Wilma Moutinho
Research Support Isabel Novais and Pedro Moldão
Technical Direction João Fonte
Technical Support Luís Rabaçal
Production Joana Mesquita Alves, Inês Soares Lopes, Sofia Freitas
Acknowledgements Henrique Margarido, Sara Morgado Santos, Suzie Peterson, São Carlos National Theatre / Bernardo Azevedo Gomes
Co-production Coliseu Porto Ageas and São Luiz Municipal Theatre
mala voadora is a structure funded by the Government of Portugal – Ministry of Culture / Directorate-General for the Arts