1 May 2024: Dr Monika Hennemann

Papageno in Phnom Penh: Die Zauberflöte as Adaptive Intercultural Theater

Wednesday 1st May 2024 (week 11 of term): Dr Monika Hennemann, Cardiff University

12:10pm in Room 3.58 of the John Percival Building on Colum Drive and via Zoom

W. A. Mozart’s Magic Flute has long been subject to adaptations and animations, to translations and transformations. In 2018, it reached a notable milestone, in becoming the first Western opera ever to be staged, or at least semi-staged, in Cambodia’s capital Phnom Penh. This was, however, an extensive adaptation of the original: A Cambodian Magic Flute, incorporating traditional instruments, music and dance associated with the16/17th-century Reamker epic (the Cambodian version of the Indian Ramayana) and employing a narration in Khmer. Far from being a uniquely eclectic experiment, the production was a prelude to a yet more ambitious, fully staged performance, originally scheduled to take place amid the magnificent temple of Angkor Wat in November 2020.

My talk analyses A Cambodian Magic Flute through theories of translation and adaptation, comparing it with other “East meets West” operatic adaptations. . Although imaginative and intriguing, the production was not as unique as it might initially have seemed, but it is certainly an instructive illustration of the issues that arise when successfully merging different modalities of intercultural theatre in a shared cultural space.

This seminar will be hybrid although Monika will be present and we encourage in-person attendance in Room 3.58 of the John Percival Building. To join online click here.