In this Danish premiere of the musical drama Metamorphosen, the group Sew Flunk Fury Wit, led by Svend E. Kristensen, returns to the Selected Works.

The title is taken from Richard Strauss’s work of the same name, which was composed in the final months of World War II. The link with Strauss’s work may be seen in the thematic and musical link with the horrors of the past century. In this modern Metamorphosen, we find ourselves in a dystopian present, deeply affected by the current climate crisis, and set in a musical universe with references to World War I and II. The work features newly-composed music, a soprano, a musician and a human-sized puppet. Also included is a very special electronic instrument, the ondes Martenot, invented in 1928 by the Frenchman Maurice Martenot. The instrument, the only one of its kind in the country, has been brought to Denmark especially for the performance. 

Svend E. Kristensen is a performer, puppet maker and puppeteer, and artistic director. He is a pioneer of object-based performing arts in Denmark and is the founder and artistic director of the groups Sew Funk Flury Wit and Mediet & Masken. As a performer, he has worked for the following groups: Kristjan Ingimarsson, Livingstones Kabinet and Von Heiduck.

Peter Kohlmetz Møller is a trained pianist and composer at the Carl Nielsen Academy of Music and the Hochshule Für Music und Theater in Hamburg.

Regina Unnur Olafsdottir is a graduate of the Royal Danish Academy of Music.