Semele (Margarita Slepakova / Le Sommeil)

Early music ensemble Le Sommeil and mezzo-soprano Margarita Slepakova present a PENTATONE debut of Semele, a striking reimagining of the myth of desire, revelation, and transformation. In this interpretation, Semele moves among gods yet remains unanchored, caught between mortal longing and divine illusion. When she insists on seeing Jupiter in his true form, the boundary between human and divine dissolves – irreversibly, fatally, and yet meaningfully. The programme brings together a rich tapestry of baroque and contemporary voices, weaving excerpts from George Frideric Handel’s Semele, John Eccles’ dramatic setting, and Marin Marais’ Sémélé, alongside new works by Gabriel Smallwood, Pablo FitzGerald, Giulio Tanasini, and Pablo Gigosos. Arrangements by Le Sommeil and Flavio Ferri-Benedetti reframe these fragments into a continuous dramaturgy, culminating in a spoken epilogue written by Margarita Slepakova that refracts the myth through a contemporary lens. The result is a musical narrative where centuries converse, and where Semele’s transformation resonates as both ancient archetype and present-day reflection.