The Traveller is an opera about having to flee your home and is based on the memoires of people, who have been in the midst of a war. It is a new, Danish opera, which combines political statements and scenes from the international scene with the opera genre’s drama, while mirroring the emotions of flight, war and hatred.

In September 2015 a large number of refugees crossed the Danish border and walked North on the freeway towards Sweden. This event resulted in a heated media debate and political actions, which – among other things – the control at the Danish border.

In The Traveller, composer and librettist Eva Noer Kondrup has focused on refugees. The opera was created from memories recorded by refugee children from the former Yugoslavia, a pivotal quote from political current affairs on refugees, and a classic frame story as seen in the Odin Teatret’s production of Bertolt Brecht’s Mutter Courage and Her Children.

The music of the piece finds inspiration in folk music traditions of the Middle East and the Balkans as well as in Klezmer music with accordion, double bass and percussion, combining an easily recognizable sound with surprising elements and classic composition techniques.

The award winning lighting designer Jesper Kongshaug will create the set design, and Ida Fogh Kiberg will be making her debut as stage director.