The Baltic Opera Festival 2025 continues its compelling exploration of the human condition with “The Monster’s Voice,” a new one-act opera that delves into themes of loneliness, exclusion, and the profound struggle for identity. This ambitious contemporary opera challenges audiences to confront uncomfortable truths, weaving together a narrative that resonates deeply with historical survival and mythological symbolism.
Central to “The Monster’s Voice” is the harrowing true story of Salomon Perel, a young Jewish boy who survived World War II by posing as an “Arian” within the ranks of the Hitler Youth. This incredible tale, famously brought to cinematic life in “Europa Europa,” serves as a poignant foundation, highlighting the extreme measures individuals take to preserve their lives under threat of annihilation. This historical context provides a chilling backdrop for the opera’s exploration of hidden identities.
Further enriching the narrative, the opera ingeniously intertwines Perel’s story with the ancient Greek myth of Medusa. Here, Medusa’s son curates an exhibition about his mother, compelled to conceal his origins—a powerful parallel to the main character’s own struggle to hide within a foreign, hostile environment. This fusion of historical account and classical mythology offers a multilayered commentary on the costs of renouncing one’s true self.
Despite its intellectually stimulating plot, some might find “The Monster’s Voice” leans towards the cerebral, yet composer Alek Nowak’s music possesses a remarkable power that transcends this, offering broad appeal. Piercing strings are artfully contrasted with the rapid, warm movements of wind instruments, creating a dynamic soundscape where a hammering march rhythm meets moments of intense suspense. This rich composition describes an inner psychological state, effectively shifting between the tension of a thriller and the introspection of a dream.
The visual projections by the designer are particularly impactful, delivering disturbing imagery. A subjective camera technique follows youngsters in Hitler Youth uniforms through a forest, implying acts of cannibalism with their faces smeared in blood. These visceral visuals, though staged, provoke profound questions about the psychological impression such depictions leave, enhancing the challenging nature of this unique opera review.
Playwright and librettist Robert Bolesto sheds light on the production’s core, describing it as depicting the creation of an exhibition titled “The Extermination of the Medusas.” He explains that the protagonist, the Curator, embarks on an inner journey, identifying with Medusa and experiencing the profound cost of abandoning one’s identity. Bolesto’s insight underscores the opera’s timely relevance, questioning the meaning of art in a world where “Never Again” seemingly loses its protective power against cruelty towards “new monsters.”
Composer Alek Nowak further elaborates on the titular character’s voice, highlighting its high and pure quality, often suppressed to avoid natural upper registers. This vocal restraint is broken only at moments of profound significance, allowing the voice to resonate fully. Nowak notes the harmony’s lean towards twelve-tone technique and an orchestration that marks a modernist retreat from Wagnerian monumentalism, favoring chamber music. This technical detail enriches the contemporary opera experience.
Director Agnieszka Smoczyńska articulates the work’s ambition to transpose a modern story into myth, aiming to reach the roots of fear, hatred, and love for timeless human truths. She emphasizes confronting operatic form with realism, presenting a documentary-style account of a museum exhibition about the extermination of the “other.” Smoczyńska explains that the emerging exhibits summon past ghosts, triggering deeply encoded fears and ultimately revealing that the libretto’s core is the enduring motif of annihilation and loss of identity, relevant throughout humanity’s history.
This significant artistic endeavor is a co-production of the Baltic Opera in Gdańsk, Malta Festival, Kulczyk Foundation, and the Polish National Centre for Culture. It proudly receives co-financing from the Minister of Culture and National Heritage, forming a vital part of the cultural program for the Polish Presidency of the Council of the European Union 2025, underscoring its international importance and showcasing Polish cultural contributions.
