The Emperor of Atlantis and The Clever One

The Emperor of Atlantis (Der Kaiser von Atlantis) by Viktor Ullmann and The Clever One (Die Kluge) by Carl Orff are two satires about oppression and dictatorship. Although both works date from 1943, they were composed in very different worlds: Emperor in the Theresienstadt concentration camp and Clever One in Frankfurt, Germany.

Ullmann’s work, a satire on fascism, is set in Atlantis where Emperor Overall advocates total war against everyone and Death retires from his duties. The score contains musical quotations from blues to “Deutschland uber Alles” in the style of a Bach chorale.

In this fairytale opera, Carl Orff, best known for his Carmina Burana, tells of a foolish, tyrannical king being bested by a clever woman, a folk story common to many cultures. Orff’s version delivers passages critical of dictatorship, creating a "world theater" that is both timeless and universal.