(Credit: © Julien Benhamou)

The Insula Orchestra has announced its upcoming tour of Beethoven’s only opera “Fidelio.”

The opera will star Sinéad Campbell-Wallace as Leonore, Stanislas de Barbeyrac as Don Florestan, Christian Immler in the role of Rocco, Sebastian Holecek as Don Pizzaro, Hélène Carpentier in the role of Marzelline, and Patrick Grahl as Jacquino. Laurence Equilbey conducts a production by David Bobée.

“Light, freedom and truth have been locked underground with Florestan, trampled both literally and figuratively by authority. The distressing impression that this is a world that has been deprived of any transparency, that we are uninformed, and that the situation has spun out of control for want of exact knowledge, that we are trying to find our way through lies and concealed realities, the feeling of obstacles to freedom of action, all this is familiar territory to today’s audience,” said director David Bobée in an official press release.

“By granting the key role in the plot to the character of Leonore, who cross-dresses as a man to secure the release of her unjustly imprisoned husband, Beethoven takes his place among the pioneering figures of feminism. He went on to reiterate his commitment through the courageous Clara in Egmont, and again in a musical tribute to the soldier Leonore Prohaska,” added conductor Laurence Equilbey.

The performances will be held in BOZAR on May 8; at London’s Barbican Centre on May 11 (in a semi-staged version); and at La Seine Musicale in Paris between May 14 – 18, 2022.