Susanna Mälkki takes the podium on February 26, 29, and March 2, 4, 6 & 8, to lead Philippe Boesmans’ opera Yvonne, princesse de Bourgogne at the Palais Garnier. Her past engagements with the venue include Dvořák’s Rusalka (2019) and the world premiere of Francesconi’s Trompe-la-Mort (2017), where she garnered critical acclaim from the Financial Times: “Women have little to say in this world; the opera fails the Bechdel test. That makes the presence of Susanna Mälkki on the podium doubly fortuitous. Her command is formidable, her clarity gives the evening form and momentum.”
Philippe Boesmans’ opera, commissioned by the Paris Opera in 2008, sordid and droll, of unexpected cruelty but also irresistibly seductive, it reveals all the darkness of the human soul. Brought to the stage in a disturbing production by Luc Bondy, both score and libretto conserve all the dark humor and cynicism of Witold Gombrowicz’s eponymous play. The production stars Dörte Lyssewski in the title role, Laurent Naouri as Le roi Ignace, Beatrice Uria-Monzon as La reine Marguerite, Julien Behr as Le prince Philippe, Jean Teitgen as Le Chambellan, Antoinette Dennefeld as Isabelle, Loïc Félix as Cyrille, and Christophe Gay as Cyprien, among others. For more information about the production and ticket links, click here.