A festival of new music theatre: 18th Münchener Biennale explores the theme of good friends, opening with a new work based on writings by Ukrainian author Serhiy Zhadan

Daniel Ott & Manos Tsangaris (Photo Manu Theobald)

Münchener Biennale - Festival für neues Musiktheater is an international celebration of new music theatre. Running from 8 to 16 May 2022 in and around Munich the 18th Münchener Biennale is the fourth to be curated by German composers Manos Tsangaris and Daniel Ott, 

Whilst the theme of this year's festival is Good Friends, the opening work had been planned for some considerable time and is an example of how art can anticipate life. So, on 8 May 2022, the festival opens with the premiere of Lieder von Vertreibung und Nimmerwiederkehr (Songs of Exile and No Return) with music by Austrian composer Bernhard Gander and words by Ukrainian poet and writer Serhiy Zhadan (in a German translation by Claudia Dathe). The work examines the dramatic effect on the human individual of war, displacement and flight, using a blend of choral passages and short dialogues to depict everyday situations and fictional experiences of flight and forced migration. The production is a co-production with Deutsche Oper, Berlin, where the production opens on 21 May 2022.

There are also premieres of works by Yoav Pasovsky, Ann Cleare, Lucia Kilger and Nicolas Berge, Polina Korobkova, Øyvind Torvund, and Malin Bång, as well as discussions and other events including the delightfully named Salon of Wondering and Views.

Full details from the festival website