Julien
Bilodeau's new opera The Wall, which is currently playing at Opéra de Montréal through March 24th, will receive it's U.S. premiere at the Cincinnati Opera next season. The work is written for 10 soloists, 48
singers and 70 musicians.
Founding Pink Floyd singer/bassist Roger Waters revisited the band's classic 1979 concept album The Wall
for a massive world tour that ran from 2010 to 2013, and he worked with Bilodeau on the opera to mark Montreal's 375th
anniversary. Waters, who has frequently infused politics into his concerts, has hinted at performing The Wall on the U.S./Mexican border to protest Trump's plan to build a wall to stem immigration.
The opera stars Québecois barihunk Étienne Dupuis as Pink, the fallen rock star, who is overprotected by his mother after his father
dies in war. Pink goes on to a failed marriage, a rock career and a dabbling in totalitarianism as he becomes consumed with guilt.
The Cincinnati Opera's production is slated for July 2018 in celebration of the $135 million restoration of Cincinnati Music Hall.
Founding Pink Floyd singer/bassist Roger Waters revisited the band's classic 1979 concept album The Wall for a massive world tour that ran from 2010 to 2013, and he's now working on another project based on the record. It's scheduled to premiere in Montreal next March to mark the Canadian city's 375th anniversary, running from March 11-24.
The project brings together Québecois barihunk, Étienne Dupuis, who will play Pink, the fallen rock star; and three exceptional artists: Julien Bilodeau, composer of the new opera vision of the work; Dominic Champagne, director of this monumental 80s music endeavour; and Alain Trudel, conductor of the Orchestre Métropolitain. Waters will serve as librettist for the production. The work is written for 10 soloists, 48 singers and 70 musicians.
The story is about the Pink's alienation and isolation in addition to the difficulties facing his entire generation regarding disillusionment. Following the death of Pink's father during World War II, and continuous abuse from his mother and teachers, Pink isolates himself from the rest of the world. The disintegration of his marriage represents the last brick in the metaphorical wall he has been building for himself. If his survival depends on it, will Pink be capable of demolishing his inner wall?
According to Rolling Stone magazine, "The story behind The Wall was partly borne out of an incident that occurred in Montreal's Olympic Stadium in 1977, when a Pink Floyd concert ended with Waters spitting in the face of a fan who attempted to storm the stage. When asked whether The Wall's opera being staged in Montreal brings the album full circle, Waters said, "The Wall is about the journey from the enmity of spitting in someone's face to the position where love becomes more important than that enmity."
Étienne Dupuis talks about his upcoming opera Les Feluettes:
Dupuis is next scheduled to sing Claudio in Berlioz's Beatrice & Bénédict at La Monnaie Bruxelles, which runs from March 24-April 6. He then heads home to perform Jeune Simon in the premiere of Kevin March's Les Feluettes (Lilies) at Opéra de Montréal from May 21-28.
