Premiere of The Cunning Little Vixen: Music meets natural drama in Cottbus!

Premiere of The Cunning Little Vixen: Music meets natural drama in Cottbus!

The premiere of the opera “The Cunning Little Vixen” by Leoš Janáček will take place on June 27, 2025 at the Cottbus State Theater. In this gripping production, staged by Armin Petras for the first time at this house, the focus is on the exciting conflict between humans and nature. The story revolves around the young vixen Smart Head, who is caught by the forester and eventually returns to the forest to regain her place in nature. But as rbb24 reports, the play ends tragically and powerfully addresses the taming of nature and the freedom of life.

Janáček's opera takes the audience into a world in which the boundaries between humans and animals are blurred. The young vixen Smart Head not only rebels against her captivity, she also awakens the chickens to revolution and leads them to the fatal conclusion that they are killed. In this respectful reinterpretation, the libretto, which is based on a picture story by Rudolf Těsnohlídek, becomes a profound story about the relationships between humans and animals. Thus, as becomes clear in the notes by Jean Michel Serres, this opera is stylized as a fairy tale and modern myth and deals with the longing for a reconciliation between the natural and the cultural world.

An extraordinary production

The premiere of “The Cunning Little Vixen” is also an important event for the Staatstheater Cottbus, as it not only represents the last premiere of this season, but also the farewell to director Stephan Märki. This production is a matter of the heart for Petras, who has been VR since 2012 with “Katja Kabanova”, who manages to bring Janáček’s profound and emotional music to life via the Philharmonic Orchestra of the Cottbus State Theater under the direction of Johannes Zurl.

The focus of the production is the actress Anne Martha Schuitemaker, who will deliver an exquisite performance in the role of the vixen Smart Head. Their presentation is underlined by the intense compositions of Janáček, who is known for his easy-to-understand but at the same time complex style. Janáček, who was born in Moravia in 1854, is considered one of the outstanding composers of the late Romantic period. His life's work was strongly inspired by folk music, which he masterfully integrated into his compositions, which is also clear in this work, as explained in Staatstheater Cottbus.

Themes of freedom and taming

The theme of freedom runs like a common thread through the entire opera. Schlaukopf was experienced not only as an animal that defends itself against oppression, but also as a symbol of the human desire for autonomy. The dramatic developments - from the fallen revolution to its tragic end - raise questions that make viewers think. These facets make “The Cunning Little Vixen” a moving piece that is worth looking at with fresh eyes.

In a world in which the balance between humans and nature is becoming increasingly fragile, the work's message remains relevant: freedom and the right to self-determination. With “The Cunning Little Vixen”, the Cottbus State Theater will celebrate the last premiere of this season and at the same time herald the entry into a new era with the new artistic director Hasko Weber. It will be exciting to see what impulses he will provide!