An exceptional event will take place on Thursday, June 13, 2024, with the Opera de Lille (Nord). The Bat by Johann Strauss, an exceptional show, will be broadcast for free in 17 locations in the Hauts-de-France region. Discover The Bat by Johann Strauss where you will find a party-goer disguised as a bat who has to endure the humiliation of crossing the city to get home while swearing revenge. An unfaithful husband to a wife who is no less so. Hardcore partiers like the prison director, a degenerate prince, and maids dreaming of becoming artists. All the ingredients of a vaudeville that one could expect from Feydeau and since it is in music dictated by Offenbach or the kings of operetta. However, this is an opera as classical as can be, fitting perfectly in the prestigious hall of the Opera de Lille, filled to the rafters with an enthusiastic audience that doesn’t hesitate to applaud the bravura pieces or Viennese waltz themes when they appear. The composer is Johann Strauss, the master Austrian himself. Caroline Sonrier, the director of the Opera de Lille, who programmed these performances to crown the opera’s 100th-anniversary year, attests to its place in the classical repertoire of German speakers. An opera in French, based on the original libretto by French librettists Meilhac and Halèvy that served as the basis for the Austrian creation, it is an opera in French where one speaks and sings in turn that we are invited to listen to and savor, even if the subtitles are of great use to decipher the songs. A secondary pleasure: 10 French singers on stage. It’s really not that common. With such a thin plot, one should not expect much depth, and one should not expect a profound meditation on the meaning of life and death here. And because of that, we laugh at the Opera; the choirs, completely integrated into the action, sing loudly throughout the second act. And when they applaud one of them, the whole hall accompanies them in their good mood. It’s joyful, colorful, rhythmic, the audience clearly enjoys it, and it surprises many to find themselves tapping their feet to accompany the refrains « this drama… it tears… my heart… » And as the crowd rushes out, you can hear them humming the tunes. The 17 places where you can attend the performance for free will be broadcast live and on a big screen in 15 locations in the Hauts-de-France region at 8 p.m. on:
• Amiens, Maison de la Culture
• Beauvais, Théâtre du Beauvaisis
• Béthune, public garden (outdoor, free access)
• Condette, Château d’Hardelot
• Fourmies, Théâtre Jean Ferrat
• Haubourdin, André Lequimme Cultural Center
• Hirson, Le Sonhir 3 cinema
• Jeumont, Gare numérique
• Le Quesnoy, Théâtre des 3 Chênes
• Lille, Place du Théâtre (outdoor, free access)
• Lomme, Maison Folie Beaulieu
• Montdidier, Hollywood Avenue cinema
• Nieppe, Château Park (outdoor, free access)
• Orchies, Pacbo
• Roubaix, conservatory auditorium
• Saint-Omer, Le Moulin à Café (Theatre de Saint-Omer)
• Wallers-Arenberg, Arenberg Creative Mine All booking information is available on the official website of the Opera de Lille. Also note performances at the Opera de Lille on Saturday, June 15 at 6 p.m. and Monday, June 17 at 8 p.m.
