Dutch National Opera
We Are The Lucky Ones
Dates
14-30 March 2025
Location
Dutch National Opera & Ballet, Main Stage
Running time
1:40, no interval
Tickets
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Multi-voiced portrait of a generation
We Are The Lucky Ones tells the story of a generation. It is based on interviews with more than seventy people in Western Europe who were born between 1940 and 1949. It is the story of people who started out with little, who experienced ever-improving living standards and are now leaving behind a world where such growth is no longer sustainable. Their memories form a collective time capsule of the past eighty years, told as one continuous life story in music theatre form. Following individual experiences and societal changes over the decades, the opera raises crucial questions about the relationship between the private and the political, the impact of our choices and what truly matters in the end.
Performance information
Got tickets for the premiere? Stay after the performance for a spectacular party with a DJ!
Sung in English
Composition Philip Venables
Libretto Nina Segal and Ted Huffman
Musical direction Bassem Akiki
Stage direction and set design Ted Huffman
Costume design Ted Huffman, Sonoko Kamimura
Lighting design Bertrand Couderc
Movement Pim Veulings
Video design Nadja Sofie Eller, Tobias Staab
Dramaturgy Nina Segal, Laura Roling
One Claron McFadden
Two Jacquelyn Stucker
Three Nina van Essen
Four Helena Rasker
Five Miles Mykkanen
Six Frederick Ballentine
Seven Germán Olvera
Eight Alex Rosen
Residentie Orkest
A thunderous opening of the Opera Forward Festival. [...] An octet of fantastic top singers and actors, who fully indulge themselves.
What emerges, in an opera as compact and overwhelming as “Wozzeck,” is a portrait of a generation told with compassion, wisdom and artfulness.
In the overwhelming opera We Are The Lucky Ones, an entire lifetime flashes before your eyes. Everything about this brand-new production about the baby boom generation hits the mark perfectly.
Whether [Claron McFadden] sings about a father with war trauma or the empty nest syndrome, her charisma and focused voice give each scene wings.
A heartwarming portrait of a generation – The performance provides [...] a wonderful opportunity for discussion afterward.
The conductor Bassem Akiki and soprano Claron McFadden on We Are The Lucky Ones
Voices of a generation
The new opera We Are The Lucky Ones is a collaboration between the composer Philip Venables, director Ted Huffman and playwright Nina Segal. It is a collective musical time capsule for people born in Western Europe between 1940 and 1949, focusing on their experiences, dreams and memories. We talk to conductor Bassem Akiki and the soprano Claron McFadden.
Photo: Bassem Akiki © Ksawery Zamoyski
Watch a sneak peek here
Residentie Orkest The Hague
The Residentie Orkest is one of the great symphony orchestras of the Netherlands with a rich history – it celebrates its 120th anniversary in 2024. This innovative orchestra, with chief conductor Anja Bihlmaier at the helm, plays at leading venues in the Netherlands and abroad in addition to its home venue Amare in The Hague. The Residentie Orkest has previously performed in new productions such as Blue and Innocence at Dutch National Opera. Season 2024-2025, the orchestra will be playing in the world premiere of Philip Venables’ new opera We Are The Lucky Ones.
“An interesting wedge has developed between the generations”
Philip Venables, Nina Segal and Ted Huffman on We Are The Lucky Ones.
Podcast
Partners Opera Forward Festival 2025
