“The Golden Fleece” Aleksander Tansman – Maria Sartova

Premiere: 04.11.2016 – Teatr Wielki de Łódź
Musical direction: Łukasz Borowicz
Direction: Maria Sartova
Choreography: Jarosław Staniek
Stage design and lighting: Yves Collet (Théâtre de la Ville, Paris)
Video design and direction: Matthieu Mullot

A few words by the Director

The legend of the Golden Fleece takes place before the Trojan War. The 90-day journey of the Argonauts is the very first European journey to the East.

Myths and legends conceal deep, dark truths behind a veil of fantastic and symbolic stories. According to philosopher and pscychoanalyst C.G. Jung, a myth stands for the pursuit of something impossible. In this case, there are two symbols: innocence as represented by a ram’s fleece and its opposite, the pursuit of glory and power, symbolised by gold.

Hence the timeless question of whether the Golden Fleece is a material or a spiritual treasure. The Golden Fleece is also the symbol of the conquest of a spiritual force, of justice and purity. Only he who masters his own passion for power may reign fairly and the fate of humankind shall depend on his victory.

The myth of the Golden Fleece is also the symbol of a journey which stands for an initiation, the passage to a superior form of humanity.

The style of the libretto is imbued with symbolism as well as surrealism. The author, Salvador de Madariaga, sets his imagination free and moves away from established values, namely rationalism. He thus creates a drama of the absurd, akin to Alfred Jarry and before Samuel Beckett and Eugene Ionesco.

The opera was produced in 1938, after Hitler took power, in a context of deep economic and political crises.
The story is set in Cockayne, a country of happiness the capital of which is Bouchebée. Well-being is ensured by Jean Laine (Golden Fleece) whose guardian is an old tiger. The inhabitants of Cockayne have problems remembering things and King Tireboule runs the State without understanding or remembering anything. The King doesn’t trust anyone but his jester, the only person in Cocagne who does not wear a mask. The King’s entourage, the court and his ministres, have no other thought than to protect their own interests.

This comedy is supported by the music of Alexandre Tansman, which is full of humour, lightness and lyricism as well as unbridled rhythm and harmony.

The myth of the Golden Fleece is presented as an inverted painting where the legend loses its idealistic message.

What remains of the legend of the Golden Fleece in the libretto?

“Individual cannibalism” has turned into “State cannibalism”. The disappointment with the existing world leads to the absurd aspect of the story and it questions an ambiguous vision of the future: is it the pursuit of profit or the loss of the identity and values of European culture?

Maria Sartova

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