Page 444 - Weiss, Jernej, ur. 2019. Vloga nacionalnih opernih gledališč v 20. in 21. stoletju - The Role of National Opera Houses in the 20th and 21st Centuries. Koper/Ljubljana: Založba Univerze na Primorskem in Festival Ljubljana. Studia musicologica Labacensia, 3
P. 444
vloga nacionalnih opernih gledališč v 20. in 21. stoletju
of the theatrical publication Gledališki list from 1941 onwards, are veritable
essays on operatic works, roles, stagings and directorial challenges, and of-
fer the best insight into Debevec‘s views on musical theatre. Some contem-
porary critics were overly superficial or even incorrect in their assessment
of his work. Positive reviews, on the other hand, recognised his remark-
able sense for the salient features of an individual work, the appropriate
casting of singers and the balance between vocal and dramatic expression.
When German forces occupied Ljubljana in October 1943, Debevec was ap-
pointed manager of the Drama Theatre and no longer worked full-time as
an operatic director. After the war he worked with the Slovene National
Theatre‘s dramatic company in Maribor for ten years while continuing to
prepare a number of operatic productions each season, mainly in Ljublja-
na. Back in Ljubljana from 1965 onwards, he realised his vision of consist-
ently emphasising the dramatic element alongside the musical element of
operatic productions, demanding performances with psychological depth
from his singers. His last production was Nabucco at the Ljubljana Opera
in 1972. Connoisseurs of his work as a director have frequently pointed out
that among his other distinctions were his musicality and his ability to read
a score, both ideal attributes for an operatic director. His efforts led to the
formation of a generation of dramatically convincing young opera singers.
He was the first to lay the groundwork for operatic dramaturgy in Slove-
nia and a notable influence on younger directors such as Emil Frelih and
Hinko Leskovšek.
Keywords: Ciril Debevec, actor, stage director, opera director, Opera
Ljubljana
Hartmut Krones
Die Wiener Volksoper als „nationale Spielstätte“
1897, gegen Ende der sogenannten „Ringstraßenzeit“, konstituierte sich
der „Kaiserjubiläums-Stadttheater-Verein“, der sich die Aufgabe stell-
te, aus Anlaß des 1898 zu feiernden 50jährigen Regierungsjubiläums von
Kaiser Franz Joseph I. in Währing ein Theater für deutsche Sprechstücke
zu errichten. Und innerhalb von nur 10 Monaten entstand 1898 das „Kai-
ser-Jubiläums-Stadttheater“ als eine bewußt „deutsche“ Bühne, die aller-
dings bereits 1903 in Konkurs ging. Ab dem Herbst 1903 wurde unter ei-
ner neuen Direktion dann auch die volkstümliche Spieloper gepflegt, ab
der Saison 1904/05 hieß das Haus endgültig „Volksoper“. Die neue Ausrich-
tung war dann zunächst überaus erfolgreich, und bald pflegte man auch
442
of the theatrical publication Gledališki list from 1941 onwards, are veritable
essays on operatic works, roles, stagings and directorial challenges, and of-
fer the best insight into Debevec‘s views on musical theatre. Some contem-
porary critics were overly superficial or even incorrect in their assessment
of his work. Positive reviews, on the other hand, recognised his remark-
able sense for the salient features of an individual work, the appropriate
casting of singers and the balance between vocal and dramatic expression.
When German forces occupied Ljubljana in October 1943, Debevec was ap-
pointed manager of the Drama Theatre and no longer worked full-time as
an operatic director. After the war he worked with the Slovene National
Theatre‘s dramatic company in Maribor for ten years while continuing to
prepare a number of operatic productions each season, mainly in Ljublja-
na. Back in Ljubljana from 1965 onwards, he realised his vision of consist-
ently emphasising the dramatic element alongside the musical element of
operatic productions, demanding performances with psychological depth
from his singers. His last production was Nabucco at the Ljubljana Opera
in 1972. Connoisseurs of his work as a director have frequently pointed out
that among his other distinctions were his musicality and his ability to read
a score, both ideal attributes for an operatic director. His efforts led to the
formation of a generation of dramatically convincing young opera singers.
He was the first to lay the groundwork for operatic dramaturgy in Slove-
nia and a notable influence on younger directors such as Emil Frelih and
Hinko Leskovšek.
Keywords: Ciril Debevec, actor, stage director, opera director, Opera
Ljubljana
Hartmut Krones
Die Wiener Volksoper als „nationale Spielstätte“
1897, gegen Ende der sogenannten „Ringstraßenzeit“, konstituierte sich
der „Kaiserjubiläums-Stadttheater-Verein“, der sich die Aufgabe stell-
te, aus Anlaß des 1898 zu feiernden 50jährigen Regierungsjubiläums von
Kaiser Franz Joseph I. in Währing ein Theater für deutsche Sprechstücke
zu errichten. Und innerhalb von nur 10 Monaten entstand 1898 das „Kai-
ser-Jubiläums-Stadttheater“ als eine bewußt „deutsche“ Bühne, die aller-
dings bereits 1903 in Konkurs ging. Ab dem Herbst 1903 wurde unter ei-
ner neuen Direktion dann auch die volkstümliche Spieloper gepflegt, ab
der Saison 1904/05 hieß das Haus endgültig „Volksoper“. Die neue Ausrich-
tung war dann zunächst überaus erfolgreich, und bald pflegte man auch
442
