UMZE will perform two stage works on this winter evening. Peter Maxwell Davies's semi-opera written in 1969 features just one singer, a piano, a violin, a cello, a flute, a clarinet and percussion. The instruments will describe real-life locations and events, such as the River Thames, the chatter of the king and a sentry. The inspiration for the piece was given by eight poems of Randolph Stow tell the story of the “mad” king George III, who reputedly taught the birds to sing. The musical adaptat...ion is one of the most distinctive and at the same time disturbing works of the 20th century. In keeping with the composer's eccentric bent – Handel's Messiah and then foxtrot appear side by side, while the singer must cover more than four octaves, as well as speaking and producing all manner of sounds and effects. A generation younger than Davies, George Benjamin – whose earlier work, At First Light, was performed at the Palace of Arts by the London Sinfonietta in January – wrote the chamber opera Into the Little Hill to a libretto by Martin Crimp. Premièred in 2006, it is also scored for just two singers, who recount the familiar tale of the Pied Piper of Hamelin in turns as actors and as narrators. The clear instrumentation, which includes a basset horn and cimbalom, brings out the sharp voice parts to even more spine-chilling effect. Despite its unsettling undertones, this is regarded as Benjamin's most enchanting and beautiful work. Presented by: UMZE, Palace of Arts
Parking information
We wish to inform you that in the event that Müpa Budapest's underground garage and outdoor car park are operating at full capacity, it is advisable to plan for increased waiting times when you arrive. In order to avoid this, we recommend that you depart for our events in time, so that you you can find the ideal parking spot quickly and smoothly and arrive for our performance in comfort. The Müpa Budapest underground garage gates will be operated by an automatic number plate recognition system. Parking is free of charge for visitors with tickets to any of our paid performances on that given day. The detailed parking policy of Müpa Budapest is available here.
Safe ticket purchase
Dear Visitors, please note that only tickets purchased from the Müpa website and official ticket offices are guaranteed to be valid. To avoid possible inconvenience, we suggest buying tickets to our performances and concerts via the mupa.hu website, the Interticket national network (jegy.hu) or at our official ticket offices.