Text and music by Judith Weir after a Sicilian folk tale. Sung in English with German surtitles.

Co-production with the royal opera house Covent garden and Co-commission

Premiere on 21 July 2011 - 7.30 p.m., Festspielhaus

The first in a series of newly commissioned operas to be performed at the Festspielhaus in the coming summer is the opera Achterbahn (Miss Fortune) by the British composer Judith Weir, jointly commissioned and co­produced by the Bregenz Festival and the Royal Opera, Covent Garden.

A young woman on the wheel of fortune, encountering cruel blows of fate and happy flukes: the first in a series of new compositions to be performed at the Festspielhaus in the coming summer is the opera Achterbahn (Miss Fortune) by Judith Weir. The new opera was inspired by and based on an Italian folk tale called Sfortuna. It tells of a young woman whose wealthy family suddenly meets hard times. She decides to make her own way in the world, trying to exist by working in gruelling occupations. Each time her luck seems to turn for the better, she is thrown by another misfortune. Later, however, she makes the acquaintance of the personification of her own Fate and after this, her life changes for the better.

Weir has updated the action to the 21st century, adapting the story into a very topical parable about the ups and downs of life. Achterbahn shows how we are often incapable of judging the various trials of life in the moment they occur. And that sometimes all efforts can prove fruitless and yet later turn out to be advantageous after all. The story doesn't teach us patience so much as equanimity and perseverance, and counsels us not to lose heart at once in the face of supposed reversals. You never know what's around the corner.

Achterbahn (Miss Fortune) is a tale about fate, a kind of parable about the ups and downs of life – and about how we are often incapable of judging the various trials of life in the moment they happen. Judith Weir is one of the most interesting composers to have come out of Great Britain in recent years. Her great interest in folklore and folk music — of Scotland, where her parents come from, but also such places as Iceland, India and China — has decisively influenced her very personal and original style. Many of Weir’s stage works are based on fantastical and dreamlike folk tales, reflecting her fascination and passion for storytelling.

Further performances
24 July - 11.00 a.m.
28 July - 7.30 p.m.

Introductory talk in the Festspielhaus will be start one hour before performance

A supplement of EUR 25 is to be paid on July 21 (category 1-3)