[English : Natural temperament] / a series of short operas in a natural setting

Episode 1 : Parc naturel régional du Luberon, TO BE CREATED on 19 September 2025

music, libretto, stage direction Benjamin Dupé
with Pauline Sikirdji (mezzo-soprano), Pierre Baux (actor), Garth Knox (viola), nn (flute), nn (guitar), nn (cello), live electronics Benjamin Dupé
assistant to the stage director Vérane Kauffmann | stage manager and sound designer Julien Frénois

«

Buoyed by a dynamic that began in 2024 with the creation of (f)riou(l), a maritime opera, the concept of Tempérament naturel is based on the notion of opera in situ, which has a double meaning. It is a work whose writing, in the broadest sense (libretto, dramaturgy, musical composition, staging principles), is nourished by the study of a particular place. It is also a work that is intended to be performed in the very place where it was conceived, inviting artists and audiences to travel outside the opera house. The first episode in this series is set in the Luberon Regional Nature Park (France).

While the unique atmosphere and poetry of the chosen site naturally infuse the composition, as do its acoustics and sound signature, the writing is also nourished by human encounters with the park rangers and, more broadly, with all the users (walkers, foresters, ecologists): exchanges of knowledge, identification of the issues, determination of the sites of inspiration and the site of restitution, writing of the libretto based on the collection of words and documentation.

The aim is to propose an original piece, with new artistic constraints, and to create a dialogue between the poetry of the place and the poetry of the musical language – instrumental and lyrical. By inviting the audience to enjoy an outdoor experience on the very site that inspired the writing of the piece, Tempérament naturel aims to reinvent the spectator’s relationship with operatic performance, and more broadly the citizen’s relationship with his or her environment, by betting on listening as a dual vector of understanding and emotion.

The piece is written for 6 performers: a female opera singer, a narrator and an instrumental quartet. It is conceived as part of a series of creations in nature, integrated into a long-term project, destined to be redesigned in new territories and for other natural sites.

»

Production : Comme je l’entends, les productions | Coproduction : Vélo théâtre années n+1 – scène conventionnée pour le théâtre d’objet et le croisement des arts et sciences, Apt | prpject in search of partners | Support :  Centre national de la musique