Chief Hijangua
Namibia's first opera by Eslon Hindundu
Libretto by Nikolaus Frei
How it all began
The entire project began with a friendship at the 2019 Immling Opera Festival in Bad Endorf, when Kim Mira Meyer from Munich and Eslon Hindundu from Windhoek, Namibia – she an assistant director, he a choirmaster and singer – met for the first time.
Together—he as composer and she as director—they wanted to work on the first Namibian-German opera that also tells the story of colonial history. Countless Zoom calls, visits to Windhoek, and return visits to Munich followed, all during the coronavirus pandemic.
After three years of preparation, the opera Chief Hijangua celebrated its world premiere in Windhoek in autumn 2022 with over 100 participants. All departments, from set design to direction to production, worked cross-border in Namibian-German teams to develop the creative concept for the production. An artist collective in the truest sense, with cultural exchange and the integration of the diverse Namibian cultures being fundamental components of the artistic process.
Impressions of the world premiere in Windhoek
On 9 September 2022, the opera Chief Hijangua by Eslon Hindundu (libretto by Nikolaus Frei) celebrated its world premiere at the sold-out National Theater in Windhoek.
Supported by the Siemens Arts Program and the German Federal Foreign Office, among others, it is not only about the first opera written by a Namibian composer, but also about examining the colonial history between Namibia and Germany and building a forward-looking cooperation between artists from both countries.
Impressions of the European premiere in Berlin
In autumn 2023, the work celebrated its European premiere at the Haus des Rundfunks in cooperation with the Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin, sponsored by the LOTTO Foundation Berlin and supported by the Siemens Arts Program.
