| Der Kaiser von Atlantis | |
|---|---|
| Opera by Viktor Ullmann | |
 A scene from the first performance at Terezin, where the opera was composed in the concentration camp in 1943, performed on 23 May 1995 | |
| Description | "legend in four scenes" |
| Translation | The Emperor of Atlantis |
| Librettist | Peter Kien |
| Language | German |
| Premiere | 16 December 1975 De Nederlandse Opera, Amsterdam |
Der Kaiser von Atlantis oder Die Tod-Verweigerung (The Emperor of Atlantis or The Disobedience of Death) is a one-act opera by Viktor Ullmann with a libretto by Peter Kien. They collaborated on the work while interned in the Nazi concentration camp of Theresienstadt (Terezín) around 1943. The Nazis did not allow it to be performed there, and the script was not finalized until the 1970s.
The world premiere, presented by the Netherlands Opera at the Bellevue Centre, Amsterdam, took place on 16 December 1975. It was conducted by Kerry Woodward using the first performing edition, which he had been actively involved in preparing.[1]
The title is sometimes given as Der Kaiser von Atlantis, oder Der Tod dankt ab, that is, The Emperor of Atlantis, or Death Abdicates,[2] and described as a "legend in four scenes" rather than an opera. It follows the personification of death as an overworked soldier, driven to abandon his duties by the senseless warmongering of the tyrannical Kaiser Overall.
- ^ Hugh R.N. Macdonald, "Der Kaiser von Atlantis", Tempo (New Ser.), 116 (1976), 42–3
- ^ Karas 1990, p. 33.