With Bad Dante Bad English Bad Opera (Purgatorio I–IX) Andrea Spreafico and Matteo Fargion have done a new translation of Dante to (anti-academic) down-to-earth English. From a stripped-down stage, the first nine cantos in Purgatory from Dante's The Divine Comedy are presented.
In a smart and humorous way, human qualities such as confusion, tolerance, a sense of justice and imperfection are being explored. Four performers – with trained and untrained voices – and a string trio invite you to listen to Dante's work in a whole new way.
The Divine Comedy commented on the experience of limbo and the nostalgia for real life, and was a critique of dysfunctional states and raging societies. This may be just as relevant in 2022, and is now presented in a new form as Bad Dante Bad English Bad Opera (Purgatorio I–IX).
Spreafico Eckly was established in 2013 in Bergen. The company often uses elements from the past to see the present in a new light. Their performances are intended as pauses in the constant flow of information we as humans receive, and as a way to reflect on the present. Matteo Fargion is a composer, performer and teacher. He has created four performances together with Spreafico Eckly since 2017.
In collaboration with Ultima Oslo Contemporary Music Festival and Nationaltheatret (the National Theatre in Oslo) .
