The Miracles of Mary in Brno National Theatre

The Miracles of Mary, H 236 returned to Brno National Theatre on Friday 27th March 2015, eighty years since it hosted its world premiere. Conducted by Jakub Klecker, the production - directed by Jiří Heřman - features performances of Daniel Bambas, Pavla Vykopalová, Alžběta Kopáčková, Svatopluk Sem, or Tereza Merklová Kyzlinková.

Martinů himself wrote about his intentions with the four-act opera: "Martinů has a precisely delineated intention of creating through his theatre plays his own au­dience and preparing it for a gradual ascent to modern Czech opera. Martinů's plan is to fill in the gaps that occurred in Czech opera because of particular circumstan­ces - whether political or cultural. In between, Martinů had prepared his principles of opera which differ exceedingly from the routine and from Wagnerian principles and presents his opera-ballet The Miracle of Our Lady, consisting of three different plays using medieval mysteries and miracles as their basis."

Brno opera-goers now have the unique chance to discover more about the opera, its author and its current production during an interactive session held at the Janáček opera on Sunday 29 March.

"In October 1935, Bohuslav Martinů (1890-1959) was awarded a State Prize for his opera The Miracle of Our Lady (Hry o Marii). At the time it was the most significant distinction won by the 45 year old composer who 12 years earlier - in October 1923 - had left for Paris to study with Albert Roussel on a small stipend and with big ideals in order to improve his composition technique and to find his own artistic means of expression. He succeeded in doing both, thanks to his exceptional talent and exceptional capacity for hard work, making a mockery of the remark in the catalogue of the State Conservatory in Prague, on June 4, 1910, that he was “dismissed for incorrigible negligence”, the kind of joke that history sometimes plays on us for its entertainment," writes his autobiographer Jaroslav Mihule.

Premiere : Friday 27 March 2015

Performances : 29 March, 2 April, 19 April from 7pm.