Credits

Oscar Wilde once said, “Man is least himself when he talks in his own person. himself when he talks in his own person. Give him a mask, and he will tell you Give him a mask, and he will tell you the truth.” The Threepenny Opera does the truth.” much the same: the opera uses much the same: the opera uses metaphoric masks—a satirical metaphoric masks—a satirical narrative by Bertolt Brecht narrative by Bertolt Brecht and “pleasant” music by Kurt and “pleasant” music by Kurt Weill—and literal masks worn Weill—and literal masks worn and created by The Atlanta and created by The Atlanta Opera to expose stark truths Opera to expose stark truths about the realities of money, about the realities of money, sex, power, law enforcement, sex, power, law enforcement, business, and government. business, and government.

The narrative of The The narrative of Threepenny Opera is drawn Threepenny Opera from multiple works. Taking from multiple works. Taking inspiration from John Gay’s inspiration from John Gay’s The Beggar’s Opera and poems The Beggar’s Opera by Francois Villon and Rudyard by Francois Villon and Rudyard Kipling, Brecht worked with Elisabeth Kipling, Brecht worked with Elisabeth Hauptmann to craft the libretto. Efforts for Hauptmann to craft the libretto. Efforts for the opera began in early 1928, and it premiered the opera began in early 1928, and it premiered on August 31 of that year. Despite its rushed on August 31 of that year. Despite its rushed composition and last-minute revisions, cuts, and composition and last-minute revisions, cuts, and changes, the work was one of the most successful changes, the work was one of the most successful productions of the Weimar Republic and quickly productions of the Weimar Republic and quickly traveled to other countries around the world. traveled to other countries around the world.

The immediate and continued success of the The immediate and continued success of the opera comes from its satirical nature. An opera comes from its satirical nature. An audience member at the premiere observed audience member at the premiere observed that those watching the show were “forced that those watching the show were “forced to confront on stage their own traits,” but, to confront on stage their own traits,” but,

“They were not repelled […] They liked it […] “They were not repelled […] They liked it […]

The people cheered themselves, they saw The people cheered themselves, they saw

themselves and were pleased.” Brecht’s narrative is engaging, his characters charming, and his staging entertaining. The show enchants, yet never wanders far from the social critique rippling beneath its surface, its humor steadfastly linked to an effort to expose corruption and immorality.

Weill’s music is well-matched to Brecht’s searing satire: it has a sweetness to it that amplifies the satire and stands in contrast to Brecht’s raw story. Weill’s music goes against operatic tradition—it is full of spoken dialogue and replete with popular musical idioms. The score is a step towards popular musical theater. For Weill, it was not enough to simply shake up the old institutions; as the writer Pamela Katz points out in her book The Partnership, Weill wanted to “transform them by writing music that appealed not only to the intelligence but also to the hearts and hips of a large audience. He dreamed of hearing his songs in the whistle of a taxi driver.” In The Threepenny Opera, Weill aspired for his catchy, popular music to further Brecht’s satire. Weill once said, “The charm of the piece rests precisely in the fact that a rather risqué text […] is set to music in a gentle, pleasant way.” This “gentle, pleasant” mask over Brecht’s text works to reveal rather than hide the social critique underlying this masterwork.

The Atlanta Opera has also creatively partnered with the Center for Puppetry Arts for this production. This collaboration not only permits The Atlanta Opera to increase safety precautions by reducing the number of performers on stage, it also creates a visual amplification of the effect of Weill’s music: just as Brecht’s “risqué” text is incongruous with Weill’s “gentle, pleasant” music, so is the pairing of the text with the puppets. The puppets—like the characters and the music—charm and entertain. Yet, hidden behind every puppet is a human puppeteer—a presence just beyond what is visible, a reminder that there is another reality behind the veneer of what we are seeing.

The Threepenny Opera opens with an introduction of the cast given by the narrator, expressly identified as Brecht, to the sound of Weill’s “Mack the Knife.”