The Minotaur Trilogy

An exquisite mythological meltdown

The Minotaur Trilogy is an exquisite mythological meltdown – an epic journey into a new kind of opera. In this extraordinary work Chamber Made Opera casts its decidedly unorthodox gaze over the ancient Greek legend with The Minotaur Trilogy resulting in an unconventional opera told over three suitably epic chapters.

Taking its inspiration from Monteverdi’s famous lost opera of which the celebrated Lamento d’Arrianna is the only fragment that remains – this work finds the ageless story of thwarted love, misplaced heroism and tragic human failings twisted, inverted and collapsed, a strange new mythology conjured from a familiar tale.

Staged in 2013 in the small-scale and acoustically rich surrounds of the Melbourne Recital Centre’s Salon, Margaret Cameron and David Young’s unexpected and daring score, a composition of image, text, found sounds and baroque instruments, forms a work of intimacy and extravagance – hallucinatory, retelling that teeters on the edge of ecstasy and oblivion.

“Opera takes bull by the horns…”

“It’s a show that’ll send traditionalists running for cover but for seekers of truly innovative art, Minotaur is a must. It is a wholly unique experience, unlike anything else this side of dreaming.”

“More house party than grand opera, Chamber Made Opera inverts the scale of traditionally large productions.”

“Wholly absorbing. A compelling sense of ritual.”

“As the first part of a trilogy, The Island sets a stunning precedent for the future works, and as Ariadne puts it at the beginning of The Island: “even if I were to die, I would return.”

“Opera buffs looking to challenge themselves should also grab a ticket to Chamber Made Opera’s extraordinary and ambitious The Minotaur Trilogy, a three-part monster that tackles Greek mythology with a modern fearlessness. Chamber Made Opera has long been a unique outpost on Australia’s performance landscape, and after several years of increasingly prolific work, this may well be the company’s most striking production so far.”

Awards

  • Victorian Performance of the Year, APRA AMCOS Art Music Awards

CD Box Set

Chamber Made Opera Records produced a limited edition CD Box Set of all three parts of The Minotaur Trilogy, recorded in extraordinary highest fidelity for ABC Classic FM.

  • CD One: Minotaur the Island
  • CD Two: Minotaur the Labyrinth
  • CD Three: Minotaur the Boats

The-Minotaur-Trilogy-CD-BOX-SET


Minotaur the Island was co-commissioned by Ten Days on the Island and Dr. Peter Gillingham.

Minotaur the Labryinth and Minotaur the Boats were co-commissioned by Michael Bink (in memory of Kim Glover), Fiona Sweet & Paul Newcombe, Helen & Peter Murdoch, Meg Morriss, Susan Pelka and Anonymous (2).

Presented by Chamber Made Opera and Melbourne Recital Centre in association with Melbourne Festival.