19-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Korea Herald
Chin Unsuk's second opera premiers in Hamburg
Korean composer's 'Die dunkle Seite des Mondes' draws inspiration from life and work of physicist Wolfgang Pauli
"Die dunkle Seite des Mondes,' the second opera by South Korean composer Unsuk Chin, premiered Sunday at the Hamburg State Opera in Germany under the baton of Kent Nagano.
For her second opera, multiple award-winning composer Chin drew inspiration from the life and work of physicist Wolfgang Pauli — pioneer of quantum physics, Nobel Prize laureate and, for a time, a professor in Hamburg — and from his relationship with the psychiatrist Carl Gustav Jung.
"Die dunkle Seite des Mondes,' or "The Dark Side of the Moon" in English, is directed by the theater collective Dead Center, which incorporates multimedia elements, including video projections and choreographed movements, to enhance the narrative's exploration of consciousness and identity.
'Die dunkle Seite des Mondes' was commissioned by the Hamburg State Opera, with support from the Ernst von Siemens Music Foundation, which awarded Chin the 2024 International Ernst von Siemens Music Prize, a prestigious award that honors a composer, performer or musicologist who has made a distinguished contribution to the world of music.
"Die dunkle Seite des Mondes" is Chin's second opera following 'Alice in Wonderland,' which premiered in 2007 at the Bavarian State Opera in Munich.
The opera is scheduled to be staged four more times between May 21 and June 5.
