SEMELE WALK

Classical music and couture came together at Sydney Festival’s headlining opera Semele Walk.

Written by Georg Friedrich Händel, the opera is based on the Greek myth of Semele, mother of Dionysus. A story of excess, Semele’s obsession with the desire of unlimited experience and her craving for immortality ultimately leads to her death. Tricked into believing that her lover, the god Jupiter, is able to grant her everlasting life, she begs him to appear in his true form, however when he grants her wish she burns in his powerful flames.

Semele represents the desire for a different emotional state, that of the Dionysian, the irrational, subversive, ecstatic and self-destructive. It is this impulsive nature which is relevant to today’s society, where we are faced with a destruction of our own making – climate change.

The cast were dressed in Vivienne Westwood Couture, referencing the style of Marie Antoinette with mini crinolines and dramatic hair and makeup imitations. The music was vibrant, varied and wild with heroine Semele as the prototype of 20th century punk.

Music-Theatre by Ludger Engels
Couture by Vivienne Westwood
Music by G.F. Händel