Le Paradis et la Péri by Daniela Kerck

Robert Schumann
Das Paradies und die Peri (Paradise and the Peri)
Staged oratorio — libretto by Emil Flechsig and Robert Schumann, after Thomas Moore: “Lalla Rookh”

Mandy Fredrich, the Péri
Sebastian Kohlhepp, tenor
Agata Schmidt, alto
Samuel Hasselhorn, baritone
Clara Guillon, the young girl
Victoire Bunel, the angel
Julien Clément, Gazna
Lancelot Lamotte, the young man
Rosana Ribeiro, choreography and dance
accentus
Insula orchestra
Laurence Equilbey, conductor
Daniela Kerck, stage director
Astrid Steiner, video

For the first time in Paris, Insula orchestra presents Paradise and the Peri, Robert Schumann’s romantic masterpiece, brilliantly staged by Daniela Kerck and enriched by Astrid Steiner’s dreamlike visual creations. Inspired by a poem by Thomas Moore, the work draws the audience into Persian mythology, following a Peri banished from paradise in search of redemption.

Under the direction of Laurence Equilbey, Insula orchestra plays on period instruments, while the accentus choir elevates the work’s many choral passages, from celestial hymns to the songs of angels and genies.

Performances in May 2025 at La Seine Musicale.
Photos © Julien Benhamou.