Can standardized freedom be completely wonderful?
Musical theater by Torsten Rasch based on Die wunderbaren Jahre (The Wonderful Years) by Reiner Kunze
Performed in German
Premiere
16. October 2026
Dates & Cast
- Conductor Christian Blex (16., 18., 20., 21., 24., 27. October 2026), Alexander Bülow (27. June, 01., 03., 06. July 2027)
- Staging Nora Bussenius
- Ausstattung Christin Vahl
- Video Gary Hurst
- Dramaturgy Martin Lühr
- Sopran Dalia Medovnikov
- Mezzosopran Christina Baader
- Bass Valentin Ruckebier
- Sprecherin Alexandra Sagurna
- Conductor Christian Blex
- Staging Nora Bussenius
- Ausstattung Christin Vahl
- Video Gary Hurst
- Dramaturgy Martin Lühr
Projektorchester
- Sopran Dalia Medovnikov
- Mezzosopran Christina Baader
- Bass Valentin Ruckebier
- Sprecherin Alexandra Sagurna
- Conductor Christian Blex
- Staging Nora Bussenius
- Ausstattung Christin Vahl
- Video Gary Hurst
- Dramaturgy Martin Lühr
Projektorchester
- Sopran Dalia Medovnikov
- Mezzosopran Christina Baader
- Bass Valentin Ruckebier
- Sprecherin Alexandra Sagurna
- Conductor Christian Blex
- Staging Nora Bussenius
- Ausstattung Christin Vahl
- Video Gary Hurst
- Dramaturgy Martin Lühr
Projektorchester
- Sopran Dalia Medovnikov
- Mezzosopran Christina Baader
- Bass Valentin Ruckebier
- Sprecherin Alexandra Sagurna
- Conductor Christian Blex
- Staging Nora Bussenius
- Ausstattung Christin Vahl
- Video Gary Hurst
- Dramaturgy Martin Lühr
Projektorchester
- Sopran Dalia Medovnikov
- Mezzosopran Christina Baader
- Bass Valentin Ruckebier
- Sprecherin Alexandra Sagurna
- Conductor Christian Blex
- Staging Nora Bussenius
- Ausstattung Christin Vahl
- Video Gary Hurst
- Dramaturgy Martin Lühr
Projektorchester
- Sopran Dalia Medovnikov
- Mezzosopran Christina Baader
- Bass Valentin Ruckebier
- Sprecherin Alexandra Sagurna
- Conductor Christian Blex
- Staging Nora Bussenius
- Ausstattung Christin Vahl
- Video Gary Hurst
- Dramaturgy Martin Lühr
Projektorchester
- Sopran Dalia Medovnikov
- Mezzosopran Christina Baader
- Bass Valentin Ruckebier
- Sprecherin Alexandra Sagurna
And more
In brief
What are “the wonderful years”? In 1977, the writer Reiner Kunze was expelled from the GDR at his own request. Within a few days, he and his family had relocated to the Federal Republic. The reason for his expatriation was a book Kunze had published in the West a year earlier: Die wunderbaren Jahre (The Wonderful Years), which sharply criticised the East German authorities. The striking stories in the book, a form of historical testimony, detail the lives of young people growing up in the GDR.
The loosely connected chapters depict ideological classroom discussions, doubts about the political system and family tensions. Yet these stories are more than just a critique of a country: this is a timeless book about young people in search of truth, freedom and their own voice. Following Die andere Frau, which he composed for the Semperoper in 2022, Torsten Rasch returns to Dresden with this chamber opera. Die wunderbaren Jahre weaves diverse folk songs into Kunze’s narrative to paint a picture of young people growing up and holding onto their dreams at a time of repression, rebellion and disillusionment.
