FEDORA - Tarkovski. The 8th Film

Presentation

TARKOVSKI. THE 8th FILM.
An Electronic Opera.

By Thomas Desi, Ekke Västrik, Ensemble U:.

A Project by Musiktheatertage Wien and Eesti Kontsert.

In conjunction with Bregenzer Festspiele, PÖFF (Black Nights Film
Festival, Tallinn), Opera Theater Helikon (Moscow), University of
Technology (Tallinn), Teatro della Tosse (Genova).

Support: Ministry of Culture of Estonia.

“Tarkovski. The 8 Film” is an electronic opera inspired by the life and works of film director Andrei Tarkovski. The production has two main themes:

- existentialism and creation (the predetermination of fate, fear of the mystical commissioner of the 8 film and of fulfilling that commission, the creative rush of making a new film)

- attachment to virtual reality (Tarkovski falls in love with his Robot-Nurse, who ends up killing him). The theme touches a sore point for society, matters to audiences in all countries and is very much current.

“Tarkovski. The 8th Film” is a work that deals with self-fulling prophecies of an artist's life. When the protagonist - a film-maker at terminal state in a hospital - is invited for an artistic project, his “8th Film”, we discover that he was predicted to do only 7 films in his life. A murky fellow patient Boris, sort of Mephistopheles, not only promises the impossible, but makes him deal with darker spots of his past life and work. Two female characters are present: A real nurse "The Witch" and a robot nurse "Julia, my angel" who are game changers of the men's plans. The inspiration of this work stems from Andrej Tarkovskij's working on "Hoffmanniana" and circumstances of this last project, never filmed.  The male artist's story is confronted to a fictional situation of a hospital with Robot- Nurses who reveal themselves not only as objects of desire and "love" of their male patients, but also as white angels of death, euthanasian executers. Philosophical dreams and visions combined with not-so-much-futurist appearances of humanoid robotics with Artificial Intelligence in health care and palliative situations that raise questions about responsibility, human rights and morale. Surrogate of men’s dream of feminine company and even a romantic ideal of untainted love in an atmosphere inspired by Japanese Noh-Theatre traditions (esp. the Mugen Noh) as well as it stylistic, artistic, and biographic elements of Andreij Tarkovskij are put on a bare existential situation, an operatic topos: Love and Death.

Artistic Team

LIBRETTO/MUSICCONCEPT/STAGING: Thomas Desi(Austria - musictheatre creator/composer/writer/director - 40 productions experience) MUSIC - Co-COMPOSITION: Ekke Västrik (Estonia - analog electronics, as upcoming artist / composer and performer with experience in wide field of music creation) MUSIC - digital programming, utes: Tarmo Johannes (Estonia - experience in music playing contemporary styles and programming in highly rated ensemble U:) MUSIC - Electronic Devices: Taavi Kerikmäe (Estonia - compositional experience, upcoming artist, / classically trained and working pianist and live electronics/theremin artist) LIGHTING DESIGN: Harald Michlits (Austria - experienced lighting designer and stage designer for music theatre productions, worked with George Tabori, represents great theatre traditions in middle Europe) COSTUME DESIGN: Anaelle Dézsy (Austria - very young upcoming theatre costume designer, 21 years, experience in opera productions and fashion)