''The Ash-Lad – Pål's Story'' () (Askeladden – Påls versjon) is a children's opera composed by

Marcus Paus Marcus Nicolay Paus (; born 14 October 1979) is a Norwegian composer and one of the most performed contemporary Scandinavian composers. As a classical contemporary composer he is noted as a representative of a reorientation toward tradition, tonal ...

to a Norwegian-language

libretto A libretto (From the Italian word , ) is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or Musical theatre, musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to th ...

Ole Paus Ole Paus (1947–2023) was a Norwegian singer-songwriter and poet, widely regarded as one of the most innovative Norwegian musical figures of the 20th century and "Norway's most significant troubadour at the time of his death." Emerging during t ...

. It was commissioned by the

Norwegian National Opera and Ballet The Norwegian National Opera and Ballet () is a Norwegian opera company and ballet company. The first fully professional company each for opera and ballet in Norway and the only such professional organisation in the country, it is currently resi ...

and premiered in 2011. Consisting of three scenes with a duration of about 80 minutes, it is based on the Norwegian fairy tales about

Askeladden Ashlad (Norwegian "Askeladden" or "Oskeladden", full name "Esben Askelad" or "Espen Askeladd" or "Espen Oskeladd") is a main character in a number of tales collected in Asbjørnsen and Moe's '' Norwegian Folktales''. The character starts out bei ...

(The Ash-Lad) and tells the story from the perspective of the perennial loser and underdog, the Ash-Lad's brother Pål.

References

Compositions by Marcus Paus 2011 operas Children's operas Operas set in Norway Norwegian-language operas Operas set in mythological places Operas {{opera-stub