Dutch National Opera presents
Venue: CC Amstel
FAMILY OPERA (6+)
Feeling lonely, Mole decides to write a song that will cheer up the moon. Grasshopper rehearses his orchestra until they know the song by heart. Then, one night, they put on a beautiful concert. So why does the moon look so sad afterwards…?
Illustration: © 2012 Mance Post
The wondrous world of Toon Tellegen
A Song for the Moon [Een lied voor de maan] is based on the eponymous children’s book by Toon Tellegen, who has won worldwide acclaim for his short stories featuring animals. Beloved by all ages, his work gives a philosophical spin to amusing and bizarre situations. Several of his stories have been set to music, including the Holland Festival production The Cricket Recovers (2011). The narrative of A Song for the Moon instantly struck a chord with composer Mathilde Wantenaar: ‘The story appealed to my musical imagination . […] It tackles important themes such as loneliness, identity, disappointment and friendship, but it is also a story about the power of music and its ability to bring people together.’
Team and cast A song for the moon
Mathilde Wantenaar
Mathilde Wantenaar (b. 1993) is a young composer who has already earned her spurs in the Dutch musical arena as well as at Dutch National Opera. She contributed her composing talents to the community project BOOM! | Amsterdam is an opera and wrote the short chamber opera personar for the first edition of OFF in 2016. A Song for the Moon, created for younger audiences, is Wantenaar’s first major opera.
Young artistic team
A Song for the Moon has its origins in a workshop organised by the European Network of Opera Academies. This network is an initiative by a number of opera houses, including Dutch National Opera, which develops masterclasses and workshops for young musicians, singers as well as stage directors.
A production in collaboration with ENOA
Team, Cast and Chorus
- Libretto
- Mathilde Wantenaar
Willem Bruls
naar het gelijknamige boek van Toon Tellegen - Set and Costume Designer
- Nele Ellegiers
- Stage Director
- Béatrice Lachaussée
- Dramaturgy
- Willem Bruls
