Miroir de nos peines (Mirror of Our Sorrows)

Commissioned by the Opéra national de Paris, the Catalan composer’s Miroir de nos peines adapts Pierre Lemaitre’s novel of the same name, with a libretto by Jean-Luc Vincent. The narrative plunges headlong into the madness of the Phoney War, as France—seized by the panic of a new European conflict—descends into chaos. Recipient of the Ernst von Siemens Composition Prize and the National Culture Prize of Catalonia, Parra is internationally recognized for his dramatic and innovative operas. Miroir de nos peines isn’t the first time he’s taken an interest in French-language literature: his adaptation of Jonathan Littell’s Les Bienveillantes premiered in 2019 to enormous acclaim, with the Barcelona newspaper La Vanguardia heralding it as “the most important opera of the 21st century.” This free, work-in-progress showing isn’t to be missed.