Music theater around the music of the Roaring Twenties

Premiere June 17, 2018, Philharmonie Luxembourg

 

Just imagine that you could travel back in time! To Paris, to the exciting time around 1920. When the cinema was invented, aircrafts ascended for the first time and creative ideas floated around like leaves in autumn. When artists from all around the world gathered in this romantic and bustling cosmopolitan city and created their finest works. Just imagine that you could mingle amongst them! The three music-making friends - an inventor, a writer and a painter - can't let go of this wishful dream. Just imagine that thanks to the time machine of the inventor they could get their hands on the long-lost composition of a world-famous Parisian composer... !

PAR!S! PAR!S! is an inspiring musictheatrical journey full of events. With the support of the audience not only the time machine will be musically operated, but also the unforgettable atmosphere that prevailed in Paris at the beginning of the last century will be brought back to life. The fascinating music of Erik Satie, Bela Bartok, Bohuslav Martinů and many others as well as the humorous play immerses the audience in this captivating time. Secretly, one hopes that it will never end!

 

Affiche Paris Paris

Photo © Anja Koehler

Credits Cast & Crew

Trailer & Animation © Christoph Greussing

Basel (CH), November 14, 2018

Once again, thank you for this wonderful "Paris! Paris "- performance at the Tinguely Museum in Basel! You have such a freshness, so much joy together on stage, so much beauty in your ensemble sound! And actually, this production is meant for all ages: For children it is funny, heavenly and so very much alive; for professional musicians your music is full of clever moments and inside jokes and great interaction! (I have not the right word ...) My face hurt from smiling ... When I came home on Wednesday night I could only speak of your performance! It was just great. All musicians should see you!

Hopkinson Smith ( International star lutenist)

Reviews

Kulturzeitschrift, Silvia Thurner, June 24, 2019

Martin Deuring, Stefan Dünser, Martin Schelling and Goran Kovacevic took the listeners in the Seestudio of the Festspielhaus with an imaginative and humorous told journey back in tim, in search of on a napkin written melody. At the highest level the Schurken played and made music in the clever story told by Annechien Koerselman. The ease of the performances made it quite easy to forget what differentiated and sophisticated music held the work as a whole together.
Annechien Koerselman has written a humorous story, in which the artistic charm in Paris during the 1920s manifest itself perfectly. The musicians yearned back in earlier times. Without further hesitation they launched their time machine, which transports them back to this time and facilitates an encounter with Erik Satie himself. After a stopover in 1938, the musicians returned to the present. In between we are treated to tense conflicts of interest, humorous stories, and even two moments of fainting.
Also dramatically "Paris! Paris!" was well constructed. In between, the musicians invited the audience to participate with sounds and body percussion to time travel. So the ticking of the clock, the targeting of the spot and the noises of the different means of transportation provided a lot of variety.
With „Paris! Paris!“ in the stage direction by Annechien Koerselman and the design by Nina Ball the Schurken achieved fascinating music theatre, home to an extensive content.

Kulturzeitschrift

Vorarlberger Nachrichten, Christa Dietrich, June 23, 2019

Photos Par!s! Par!s! © Anja Koehler & Benno Hunziker

01 Paris © Benno Hunziker 02 Paris © Anja Koehler 03 Paris © Anja Koehler 04 Paris Anja Koehler 05 Paris Anja Koehler 06 Paris Anja Koehler 07 Paris Anja Koehler 08 Paris © Anja Koehler 09 Paris © Anja Koehler 10 Paris © Anja Koehler 11 Paris © Anja Koehler 12 Paris © Anja Koehler 13 Paris © Anja Koehler 14 Paris © Anja Koehler 15 Paris © Anja Koehler 16 Paris © Anja Koehler 17 Paris © Anja Koehler 18 Paris © Anja Koehler 19 Paris © Anja Koehler 20 Paris © Benno Hunziker 21 Paris © Benno Hunziker 22 Paris © Anja Koehler 23 Paris © Benno Hunziker 24 Paris © Anja Koehler 25 Paris © Anja Koehler 26 Paris © Anja Koehler 27 Paris © Anja Koehler 28 Paris © Benno Hunziker 29 Paris © Benno Hunziker 30 Paris © Anja Koehler 31 Paris © Benno Hunziker