Around 1902 Leo Blech took the subject of the “original romantic-comic magic” play by Viennese theatre manager/actor/playwright Ferdinand Raimund, adapted it, and turned it into his fifth opera. A cantankerous misanthrope terrorises family and servants with his paranoid mistrust. He’s cured only when faced with his own behaviour, courtesy of a supernatural role reversal. Highbrow opera meets folksy farce with unexpectedly sumptuous and splendidly orchestrated music that lies somewhere between Wagner and Humperdinck. The opera’s premiere at the Dresden Court Theatre was a sensational success. All of Blech’s music was subsequently banned and, once the Nazi horror was over, it never returned. Now you can hear what we missed.

Cast:
- Astragalus: Ronan Collett
- Rappelkopf: Hrólfur Saemundsson
- Marthe: Sonja Gornik
- Sabine: Irina Popova
- Hans: Tilmann Unger
- Lieschen: Anne-Aurore Cochet
- Habakuk: Hyunhan Hwang
- Veit meinhardt: Pawel Lawreszuk
- Katharine: Fanny Lustaud
- Susel: Anna Graf