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Letter to Peter, on Saint François d'Assise by Olivier Messiaen (1992) [N/A]

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Release Date:
January 1, 1992

Original Title:
Letter to Peter, on Saint François d'Assise by Olivier Messiaen

Genres:
Documentary | Music

Ratings / Certifications:
 N/A

Runtime: 82

Overview from TheMovieDB

In 1992, Olivier Messiaen's epic opera "Saint François d'Assise" was brought to the Salzburg Festival in a staging by Peter Sellars. The distinct visual appearance that Sellars lent to the opera, where video monitors with powerful images are used as a sort of high-tech metaphor for a cathedral's stained glass, drew critical acclaim and is still talked about as a watershed moment in opera to this day. This film here is a 75-minute documentary on the 1992 staging. Jean-Pierre Gorin filmed Sellars, baritone José van Dam (St. Francis) soprano Dawn Upshaw (The Angel), and the LA Philharmonic and conductor Esa-Pekka Salonen as they rehearsed for the big day. There are interviews with these artists, though Sellars gets most of the screen time. The documentary is very much about Sellars' vision for Messiaen's theatrical drama. Very little is said about Messiaen's music.

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Performers

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Production

Assistant Director:
Brooks Riley

Camera Operator:
Felix Kränkl
Walter Rektorik

Cinematography:
Wolfgang Koch

Costume Designer:
Dunya Ramicova

Director:
Jean-Pierre Gorin

Executive Producer:
Rainer Mockert

Lighting Design:
James F. Ingalls

Producer:
Manfred Frei

Set Designer:
George Tsypin

Stage Director:
Peter Sellars

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