Synopsis
Telling the tale of the impossible love of Khosrow, the King of Persia, and Shirine, a Christian Princess of Armenia, Shirine is an epic full of twists and turns, marked by doom and death. This story, which extends over three generations, has been adapted by Atiq Rahimi from the work of the 12th-century Persian poet Nizami Gandjavi.

A Persian fantasia
In 2013, Thierry Escaich had already given the Opéra de Lyon Claude, with a libretto by Robert Badinter. So for this new creation, the composer and world-famous organist – his three Organ Concertos have been played worldwide – turned to the assistance of an extremely particular librettist: the Franco-Afghan author Atiq Rahimi who won the Prix Goncourt in 2008 with Syngué Sabour, The Patience Stone. After the prison world where Claude is set, Thierry Escaich may well be dealing here with quite a different universe – of tales and legends – but there can still be found the same compositional touch, that famous “liturgy of anxiety” and a unique musical sensitivity, on this occasion heightened by oriental colours inspired by traditional Iranian music. With Shirine, which is also a reflection about representation, the composer opens himself up to a metaphorical writing which glides slowly towards a Persian fantasy. This dimension is backed up by the staging of Richard Brunel (Alexander von Zemlinsky’s Le Cercle de Craie at the Opéra de Lyon in 2018), as well as a vocal cast made up of great, young talents (Julien Behr and Hélène Guilemette in the roles of Khosrow and Shirine).

Opera in twelve tableaux, 2019
Libretto by Atiq Rahimi, after Khosrow o Shirin by Nizami Gandjavi (1141-1209)

New production
World premiere, commissioned by the Opéra de Lyon