OVERVIEW

Libretto of The Broken Jug by Viktor Ullmann based on the comedy of the same name by Heinrich von Kleist (1777–1811) from 1806

Conductor Jakub Klecker
Stage director Rocc

The second author out of three to whom the Terezín Opera Cycle is devoted is Viktor Ullmann, a native of Těšín. Two one-act operas, which he composed in a short time interval, premiere at the National Moravian-Silesian Theatre. While The Broken Jug—a satirical tale of a seemingly absurd trial—was completed just before the author's interment in the Terezín Ghetto, The Emperor of Atlantis was negatively affected by the place of its creation and its prohibited premiere in Terezín, as — the parallels between the Nazi leader and the fictional character of the emperor resulted in censorship halting the rehearsal process in March 1944. Conducted by Kerry Woodward, the opera premiered at the Dutch National Opera on 16 December 1975 and has been one of the most commonly performed titles abroad in recent years.

Performed in the Czech translation by Jaromír Nohavica with Czech and English subtitles.