Fastnachts-Lust | Music theatre after an opera-ballet from the court of Augustus the Strong

Joint press release

Ars Augusta e.V. & Institute for Research and Development of Early Music in Dresden (Musikschätze aus Dresden) e.V.

DRESDEN/GÖRLITZ, 4 August 2026 – A piece of Dresden court and festival culture returns to the stage in September 2026: after more than 300 years, the opera-ballet Fastnachts-Lust, written for Carnival 1697, will be revived with music, singing, dance and acting. Performances take place on 26 September 2026 at the Apollo Theatre Görlitz (avant-première) and on 28 September 2026 in the reconstructed Palace Chapel of Dresden’s Residenzschloss (premiere).

The libretto was written by Countess Maria Aurora von Königsmarck (1662–1728), one of the most fascinating women of the Baroque age. The witty and highly educated poet was the first official mistress of Augustus the Strong, the young “Saxon Sun King”. His turning away from her and towards a new favourite forms the biographical background of the work. In this way she was able to hold up a mirror to the unfaithful ruler through art. The music was composed by court Kapellmeister Johann Christoph Schmidt (1664–1728), who came from Hohnstein in Saxon Switzerland.

Fastnachts-Lust fell into oblivion and is now being rediscovered. Both the printed original libretto and a score copy held in the British Library in London have survived. Such a transmission situation is extremely rare for German sung court ballet of that period.

Because of this unique cultural-historical value, the score was included in the series “Denkmäler der Tonkunst in Dresden” of the Institute for Research and Development of Early Music in Dresden (Musikschätze aus Dresden) e.V. The historical-critical edition, edited by Sebastian Biesold and accompanied by texts presenting the latest research, is published in parallel by Ries & Erler in Berlin.

The idea for the revival was developed by Dr Reiner Zimmermann (1941–2026), long-standing chairman and spiritus rector of the Institute. He shaped the conceptual design of the project, brought the partners together and won them over for the joint realisation.

The production of Fastnachts-Lust is staged with an international cast by Ars Augusta e.V. (Görlitz) – an experienced association with a fitting artistic-musical profile under the direction of opera singer Eleni Müller, who for ten years has devoted herself to rediscovering Baroque operatic treasures from Dresden and Wrocław and keeping alive the Saxon-Polish cultural heritage of the age of Augustus the Strong. Direction and the newly written spoken linking texts are by Dresden director and author Amal Reich.

For me, Fastnachts-Lust is not a museum piece. Behind the Baroque work lies a story of love, rejection and self-assertion that still touches us today.

Amal Reich, director of the production

The production is already meeting with a pleasingly positive response. It is created in close collaboration with Musikschätze aus Dresden e.V. and is embedded in the international conference “Mistresses, Power and Art around 1700. Scope for Female Agency at European Princely Courts” (28–30 September 2026, Dresden). It is also realised in cooperation with the Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden in connection with the new permanent exhibition of the Armoury in the Residenzschloss, “Masks and Crowns. Festival Culture and Representation of Power at the Dresden Court”. The performance in the Palace Chapel, with generous support from the SKD, offers the unique opportunity to bring the work back to life at the historic site of its original world. Partner for the avant-première is the Gerhart-Hauptmann-Theater Görlitz-Zittau.

The project is part of “Zeig Dein Sachsen” – the participation campaign for the anniversary 2029: 1100 years of Saxony.

Production information

Performances

Avant-première: 26 September 2026, 7:30 p.m. – Apollo Theatre Görlitz

Premiere: 28 September 2026, 7:30 p.m. (with introductory talk) – Palace Chapel Dresden

Tickets: www.arsaugusta.org/fastnachtslust (remaining tickets possibly at the box office on the evening)

Cast

“La Compagnia Sassone” with Alexandra Beason, Nicolle Cassel, Beate Laaß, Roberto Jachini Virgili and Radoslava Vorgić, and the Lusatian Baroque Ensemble on copies of historical instruments; direction & texts: Amal Reich; choreography: Mandy Coleman; production & artistic direction: Eleni Müller.

Organisers

Ars Augusta e.V. (production), Augustastr. 6, 02826 Görlitz, arsaugusta@gmail.com | www.arsaugusta.org

Institut zur Erforschung und Erschließung der Alten Musik in Dresden (Musikschätze aus Dresden) e.V., Sarrasanistr. 5, 01097 Dresden, info@musikschaetze-dresden.de | www.musikschaetze-dresden.de

Partners

International conference “Mistresses, Power and Art around 1700. Scope for Female Agency at European Princely Courts” (Dresden, 28–30 September 2026), organised by the Institute for Saxon History and Cultural Anthropology (ISGV), SLUB Dresden, TU Dresden, KU Eichstätt-Ingolstadt and the University of Würzburg

In cooperation with the Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden in connection with the new permanent exhibition of the Armoury in the Residenzschloss: “Masks and Crowns. Festival Culture and Representation of Power at the Dresden Court”.

Funders

Supported by the Cultural Foundation of the Free State of Saxony and the City of Görlitz. Supported as part of the campaign “Zeig Dein Sachsen” of the state campaign So geht sächsisch. for the 1100th anniversary of Saxony in 2029: Sachsen1100.