OPERATION ORLAC [June 2009] - Theaterarchäologische Rekonstruktion des Stummfilms "Orlacs Hände" von Robert Wiene (Wien, 1924)
When brut-wien invited ZOON to do two more showings of "OPERATION ORLAC" in June 2009, it was about to just repeat the october 2008 creation. For some reason the roles of YVONNE as well of the DOCTOR SERRAL were a´newly assigned to polish soprano Halina Graser and to Roman Maria Mueller for the doctor. Some tweaking on the layout of the space and of course the individual personality of the newly arrived artists in the group gave the impression of a cleaned-up piece. Two more things were introduced: the extensive use of torch--lights as well as the fact that the "new" YVONNE would not have any verbal text on her music. This created a nearly "seamless" continuum between the mute Doctor, the Soprano using only vocalises, the "extended voice" of NERA, rezitation in antique style by ORLAC and the conventional singing of the MAID. As an introduction to the whole evening, two short bits from the original movie were showed: first where the pianist is playing (we hear Godowsky playing the first movement of Chopin's "Sonata in b-minor" op.35, a recording from 1932) and a bit of the train-accident. This experimental moment seems quite striking for its time. Up to a certain point in the evening a background crackling noise is supplied, as if the whole ongoing sounds came from an old vinyl disque. All this intensified the experience, an expedition on search for specific "feelings" (German: Gefühle) of that time: anxious expectations and "Vorgefühle" (presentiments). The main interest here is the introduction of Frederic Chopin's piano etudes in a music-theatrical context. The music itself (regarding the pieces played on the piano) are not altered in the text. Moreover it was our goal to achied a "interpretative model" for the finale of op.35 (Sonata b-minor) as well as for the etude op.10/12 ("revolutionary") and a short example of "rubato" in the Nocturne. A "model interpretation" because the speed and clarity of the Op35 finale is hardly to be achieved by a human pianist.It was because of this aspect of the work that the Vienna Music University included "Operation Orlac" in the uni:vision project "Zwischen Bearbeitung und Recycling" , initiated by head of Music Theory, Prof. Dr. Dieter Torkewitz. www.bearbeitung-und-recycling.at
Orlac, pianist, Helmut Bohatsch Yvonne, his wife, Halina Graser Maid, Anna Hauf Doctor Serral, Roman Maria Mueller Nera, his assistant and a criminal, Gottfried Falkenstein Torch-Lighting Mike Wanzenboeck Grid-Lighting and Technics Bartek Kubiak costumes for Yvonne modernmartyr (Angela Widermann) assistant Regina Picker concept, text, musical arrangements and direction Thomas Desi