Jarrett as Jupiter

As part of New Orleans Opera’s ongoing support of French culture and French opera we present, as part of our legacy year, Jacques Offenbach’s outrageous parody on the life of everyman Orpheus, as he quests heaven and hell for his true love? This perfect opéra bouffe (comic opera) premiered in 1858 and had a revival in 1874. Ours will be the 1858 version, with a touch of 1874 version. Both hilariously poked fun at the politics of the day and of course, the state of life in the hands of “the gods”. This work also gave birth to the “infernal galop”, which became so popular it was adopted into the “can-can” at the Moulin Rouge decades later. It also had the distinction of insulting just about everyone in Second French Empire.

Newly decorated chevalier, Maestro Lyall, leads this inspired new production conceived by Director Alison Moritz and Scenic Designer Steven Kemp, harkening to a strange and parallel universe of oddities that the gods desire.