The Last Days of the Opera

The title is inspired by the epic drama The Last Days of Mankind by Karl Kraus. Published in full in 1922, its author ridicules the interconnected ills of modernity that he saw as fueling the war machine (nationalism, capitalism, unbridled technology,militarism, journalistic unscrupulousness) as well as the Viennese cultural scene of the time. The drama bears chilling parallels to our world in 2020. The goal of the anthology, which includes some 100 essays, is to consider the relevance of opera in today's dystopian world and to look to possible developments in the genre in the foreseeable future. 
The writers include opera professionals: singers, directors, and conductors as well as creative minds from other fields, like philosophers, artists, film directors, and actors. The book features an iconography of original works by famous artists, in particular those of the renowned stage designer Richard Peduzzi. 
Herausgegeben von: Denise Wendel-Poray, Gert Korentschnig und Christian Kircher
Softcover, 488 Seiten, 16,5 x 24 cm