''Der Kirschgarten'' (The Cherry Orchard) is an

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a libr ...

in four acts by the Swiss composer

Rudolf Kelterborn Rudolf Kelterborn (3 September 1931 – 24 March 2021) was a Swiss musician and composer. Life Born in Basel, Kelterborn studied in Basel, Detmold, Salzburg, and Zürich, among other places, with the composers Walther Geiser, Willy Burkhard, B ...

. The German-language libretto was written by the composer and is based on Gudrun Düwel's German translation of Anton Chekhov's 1904 play ''

The Cherry Orchard ''The Cherry Orchard'' (russian: Вишнёвый сад, translit=Vishnyovyi sad) is the last play by Russian playwright Anton Chekhov. Written in 1903, it was first published by '' Znaniye'' (Book Two, 1904), and came out as a separate editio ...

''. The opera was composed between 1979 and 1981 and premiered on 4 December 1984 at the

Zürich Opera House The Zürich Opera House (german: Opernhaus Zürich, links=no) is an opera house in the Swiss city of Zürich. Located at the Sechseläutenplatz, it has been the home of the Zürich Opera since 1891, and also houses the Bernhard-Theater Zürich. ...

to inaugurate the newly renovated theatre. The premiere production was conducted by

Ralf Weikert Ralf Weikert (born 10 November 1940) is an Austrian conductor, especially of operas by Mozart and Rossini. He is an academic teacher of conducting in Luzern. Born in Sankt Florian, Weikert studied at the Bruckner conservatory in Linz and the Hoch ...

and directed by

Nikolaus Lehnhoff Nikolaus Lehnhoff (20 May 1939 in Hanover – 29 August 2015 in Berlin) was a German opera director. Life and career Born in Hanover to Erika (née Fiediger) and Friedrich Lehnhoff, Lehnhoff studied at the University of Munich and the University ...

. Evelyn Lear created the pivotal role of Ranevskaya. Rosenthal, Harold (2008)
"Lear (née Shulman; married name Stewart), Evelyn"
in Laura Williams Macy (ed.), ''The Grove Book of Opera Singers'', pp. 272–273. Oxford University Press.

Roles

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kirschgarten, Der Operas by Rudolf Kelterborn German-language operas 1984 operas Operas Operas based on works by Anton Chekhov Operas based on plays