Song from the Uproar

Song from the Uproar: The Lives and Deaths of Isabelle Eberhardt, composed by Missy Mazzoli, is a hypnotic and visually rich opera that takes the viewer to the heart of the life of an extraordinary woman. The work is based on the diaries and texts of the Swiss-born adventurer, writer and explorer Isabelle Eberhardt (1877–1904), which glow with freedom, restlessness and a burning desire to cross borders. Orphaned at a young age, Isabelle abandons Europe and heads for the deserts of North Africa, living as a nomad, often dressed as a man, searching for her place in the world and within herself.

The opera builds a layered, almost dreamlike journey through Isabelle’s experiences: grief and loss, the cautious awakening of love, the ecstatic sense of freedom and finally the enigma of death. Mazzoli's music combines modern expression, repetitive structures and deep emotionality to create an intense, almost meditative whole.

Song from the Uproar is a powerful and timely work about the search for identity, the encounter of cultures and the fragility of life. It invites the viewer to dive into a world of courage, longing and unlimited freedom – a place where life and death are intertwined as beautifully as they are mercilessly.

American composer Missy Mazzoli has quickly risen to become one of the most interesting authors in contemporary opera. Her opera Lincoln in the Bardo will premiere at the Metropolitan Opera in New York this autumn.

Mezzo-soprano Pihla Terttunen has already interpreted the role of the work in Central Europe, and the Stralsund Opera production was chosen as the opera event of the year 2025 (Opernwelt).