One of the most argued about operas of recent decades, based on the hijacking in 1985 of the cruise ship Achille Lauro by the Palestine Liberation Front, is to be staged by the English National Opera.
The ENO's artistic director, John Berry, said The Death of Klinghoffer was "probably the most controversial piece of the last 50 years". It focuses on the murder of Leon Klinghoffer, a wheelchair-bound Jewish American passenger who was shot in the head during the hijacking and thrown overboard.
The John Adams opera comes to London next February, part of a season, announced on Tuesday, that is striking for the number of new productions – 11, including four by living composers.
Berry believes The Death of Klinghoffer is Adams' best work, though not staged enough because of its sensitive story. It has been denounced by the Klinghoffer family as exploitative and biased towards the Palestinians. The work is to be directed by one of the UK's brightest young theatre directors, Tom Morris (known for War Horse, he is now artistic director at Bristol Old Vic).
The finale of ENO's 2011/12 season will be Damon Albarn's Doctor Dee, directed by Rufus Norris and to be first seen this summer at the Manchester festival. It will be ENO's Olympic contribution, being staged as part of the London 2012 festival.
There are two works by living German composers in the lineup: Detlev Glanert's Caligula, which is more about dictatorship than just Roman decadence, and Wolfgang Rihm's Jakob Lenz, an exploration of schizophrenia that will be staged at the Hampstead theatre, London.
The other new productions include Fiona Shaw directing, in October, a new version of The Marriage of Figaro; Barrie Kosky directing Castor and Pollux, by Rameau, an 18th century French composer rarely staged in the UK; Deborah Warner directing Eugene Onegin; Richard Jones directing The Tales of Hoffmann; Jonathan Kent directing The Flying Dutchman; and, following his terrific success with Peter Grimes, two years ago, David Alden will direct Billy Budd, ahead of the Benjamin Britten centenary in 2013.
Berry said ENO was committed to presenting living composers and contemporary opera, showing "how the power of opera can explore politically and socially charged issues of the world we live in and most importantly, communicate and connect with modern audiences".
ENO is currently basking in the glory of a fantastically well-received Terry Gilliam directed opera, The Damnation of Faust, following a hit and miss record of using film directors.
The company is also reviving some of its previous hits, including Jonathan Miller's The Elixir of Love, Catherine Malfitano's Tosca, David McVicar's Der Rosenkavalier and Anthony Minghella's Madam Butterfly.
See tickets for The Death of Klinghoffer Opera
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