Gerard Mortier’s record of his life
mainHis last ambition was to hold this book in his hands.
It was not to be.
The memoir recounts his own role in the development of opera production, placed in the context of a 400 year-old story. He regards the theatre as ‘a religion of humanity’
Pub. details:
Gerard Mortier: Dramaturgie einer Leidenschaft. Für ein Theater als Religion des Menschlichen. Aus dem Französischen von Sven Hartberger. Bärenreiter-Verlag / Verlag J. B. Metzler 2014. ISBN 978-3-7618-2060-5. 126 Seiten. € 24,95.
The spanish version of this work was already published in Spain in 2010, short after Mortier took his post in Teatro Real.
Gerard Mortier: Dramaturgia de una pasión. Ediciones AKAL. 2010 ISBN 978-84-460-3185-7. 160 pages
http://books.google.es/books?id=Q6s2BjfddW0C&dq=Mortier,+Gerard+(2010).+Dramaturgia+de+una+pasi%C3%B3n.+Madrid:+Akal+Ediciones&source=gbs_navlinks_s
It was adaped from an earlier french edition:
http://books.google.es/books?id=wI4LQgAACAAJ&dq=gerard+mortier+dramaturgie+d%27une+passion&hl=es&sa=X&ei=NwEfU5H2II-Z0QXBzIDQCw&ved=0CDQQ6AEwAA
Baerenreiter appears to have published a translation of the original French edition, which appeared in 2009.
http://www.amazon.fr/Dramaturgie-dune-passion-G%C3%A9rard-Mortier/dp/2267020548
What kind of unrealized ambition was it for Mortier not to have held the German translation? Are there any updates in it?
Example of Gérard Mortier’s brilliant wit.
At a public discussion in Zurich many years ago August Everding was defending the repertoire opera system and mocking the stagione system by saying, “If you have a restaurant which is open only on Thursday evening and Sunday afternoons and serve only one dish, who will want to eat there?” Gérard Mortier replied, “Fair enough, but if you have a restaurant that is open 24 hours a day and serves only leftovers from the day before yesterday, who will want to eat there?” It was a long while before the laughter subsided and the discussion could continue.
I personally prefer the repertoire system but hats of to Gérard Mortier for a very clever come back.