Project "Histoire du Soldat" (The Soldier's Tale)
Puppets of the Marionettentheatre Festi-Ligerz
Project "Histoire du Soldat" is a theatrical work incorporating a narrator and a trio of musicians performing with the original Histoire du Soldat puppets from the famous Swiss marionette puppet theatre from Michaela's home village of Ligerz. This delightful composition was conceived by Stravinsky and the Swiss writer C.F. Rumuz, who based this masterpiece on the Russian folk tale, The Runaway Soldier and the Devil, from Alexander Afanasyev's collection of tales. Michaela was the violinist in mind when this project was developed. It is based on the 1919 trio (violin, clarinet and piano) version; however, for these performances, the accordion replaces the piano.
The Marionettentheatre Festi-Ligerz was active from 1928-1943 and closed down by the war. The flexibility of this ensemble for any given stage along with the display of the characters of the puppets, makes for a fresh and enthralling experience of Histoire du Soldat.
Project Members:
Actor / Speaker: Heidi Maria Glössner Violin: Michaela Paetsch Clarinet: Stephan Siegenthaler Acordion Wieslaw Pipczynski