The Raft of the Medusa

The Raft of the Medusa

  • Overview
  • Cast
  • Crew

Status

Released

Release Date

Mar 26, 2018

Runtime

1h 21m

Genres

Music

Original Title

Das Floss der Medusa

Director

Romeo Castellucci

Description

Hans Werner Henze’s “The Raft of the Medusa” is directly inspired by Théodore Géricault’s famous painting. The German composer sets to music the fate of 150 people who have been shipwrecked and abandoned to their destiny. This is a radical work that fluctuates between hope and inevitability, agony and sudden bursts of life. The Raft of the Medusa is an oratorio that was first performed in 1968. Fifty years on, the Italian director Romeo Castellucci underscores its immense modernity, drawing a striking parallel between Hans Werner Henze’s work and the current migrant crisis in the Mediterranean.