ATATÜRK

An opera in three acts Libretto by Olga Bach in German, Turkish, Armenian, Kurdish, French, Greek and English with German and English surtitles.

A nation invents itself – and one man becomes its face. At the end of World War I, Mustafa Kemal, a celebrated military leader in the crumbling Ottoman Empire, envisions a young, modern republic modeled on the West. In defiance of the Allies’ geopolitical plans, he proclaims the new Turkish state in 1923 and, through reforms such as secularism, women’s rights, the headscarf law, and script reform, establishes the framework for a new state and a new conception of humanity: “He would not stoop down; the people should rise up to him.” Yet every new beginning exacts its price. What does it cost to invent a nation? 

Personal relationships take on historical significance, and political visions encroach upon the most intimate spaces. Female figures, companions, opponents, and a polyphonic chorus form the echo of a society in upheaval. Amid waltz-like bliss, dervish dances, and war reports; tradition and secularization; emancipation and repression – a panorama emerges of an era rewriting itself, yet leaving behind unanswered questions. What does progress mean? Who pays for reforms? And how much violence lies within the dream of unity? 

Playwright Olga Bach’s poetically condensed libretto does not follow a chronological order. It moves between documentary traces and fiction: the frenzy of the end, the intoxication of the beginning, the long shadows of political decisions. 

Kammersänger Matthias Klink performs the title role, while composer Bassem Akiki, conducting the Staatsorchester Stuttgart, intertwines sound and stage into a multi-layered space of diverse musical cultures – creating a musical theater that does not merely illustrate history, but questions it from a contemporary perspective.