World-first 3D technology will bring The Flying Dutchman’s watery backdrop to life.

Opera glasses may be considered a largely out-dated accessory for opera lovers, but they are being given a 21st century makeover ahead of Victorian Opera’s upcoming production of The Flying Dutchman. Billed as the world’s first full-length opera to make use of 3D technology, audience members attending VO’s latest offering will be required to don 3D glasses to experience this pioneering new innovation.

Victorian Opera have teamed up with 3D projection specialists Deakin Motion.Lab to bring the ghostly maritime backdrop of Wagner’s haunting masterpiece to life in three dimensions. The tempestuous seas and doomed ghost ship at the centre of this story of love and redemption can pose a significant issue when staging this opera. “So much of the imagery of this opera is of the sea and the ship. It’s stuff that’s really hard to achieve in a satisfactory way,” says Roger Hodgman, the production’s director. “Using 3D technology has allowed us to provide the visuals that I think Wagner always intended, but that is often hard to achieve.”

This production of The Flying Dutchman, which is being staged at St Kilda’s Palais Theatre, is one of Victorian Opera’s most ambitious undertakings since the company was founded in 2006. It stars two seasoned Wagnerian singers, German baritone Oskar Hillebrandt and American soprano Lori Phillips.

Victorian Opera present The Flying Dutchman at the Palais Theatre, Melbourne, February 14 – 19.

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