The Opera Through Which El Raval Enters the Liceu
La gata perduda is the opera with which the Raval enters the Liceu and with which the Liceu has had the opportunity to open up, get to know, and learn from a neighborhood it is part of and that welcomes it.
This proposal involves the participation of the neighbors from the most eclectic community in Barcelona: over 40 nationalities in 1.1 km², where the highest density of associations in the European Union is found. About 1,000 people, including individuals, entities, and organizations, have participated with varying degrees of involvement.
A dialogue that has been enriching on both sides – artistic and community – and has been a transformative experience for all the agents involved.
Artistic Team
This project also involved an artistic team that has created a new opera in collaboration with the entire neighborhood, offering them the opportunity to integrate into an innovative program in our country. La gata perduda features a libretto written by playwright Victoria Szpunberg, based on extensive bibliographic research about the neighborhood and around twenty interviews conducted with the residents of the Raval, a key source of inspiration for the writing of this fiction.
The composition of the work was done by Arnau Tordera I, drawing on the musical realities of the neighborhood. It combines perspectives on the different musical styles that can be explored today in stage music, opting for a symphonic language that connects with the Romantic opera of the second half of the 19th century, as well as with cinematic music.
Community Mediation
Throughout the process, community dialogue has been activated, Liceu-neighborhood, neighborhood-Liceu, creating connections with over seventy local agents and organizations. This extensive and continuous work of prospecting, listening, and dialogue prominently includes the participation of the Tot Raval Foundation. The professional Eva García was invited to join the Opera Prima team for the project's conceptualization and implementation, together with the Liceu team.
The opportunity was taken to create a project that adds value to the Liceu and the neighborhood, and an impact assessment team—Nicolas Barbieri and Nil Barutell—was involved from the very beginning.
The plot
The plot of La gata perduda presents a traditional tension in the world of opera between the high and the low, between power and the people. Power, symbolized by an ambitious and ostentatious magnate, wants to place the Raval under his control, an operatic Raval made up of a colossal choir of the neighborhood's residents. The libretto portrays a globalized world, where the consequences of a system driven by economic profit clearly and directly impact the population, the neighborhoods, and the lives of its citizens.
Recognition and Awards for La Gata Perduda
Serra d'Or Critic’s Prize | 30/03/2023 in Barcelona
Serra d'Or Critics’ Prize for Performing Arts 2023 for the show La Gata Perduda
Max Awards 2022 | 17/04/2023 in Cádiz
Award for Best Musical or Lyric Show for La Gata Perduda
Josep Anselm Clavé Choral Singing Prize 2022 in Catalonia | 28/04/2023 in Canovelles
Best Show – choral singing production (ex aequo): La Gata Perduda – first opera
II Edition of Musical Theater Awards 2023 | 06/11/2023 in Barcelona
Special Award for La Gata Perduda
VI Edition of the National Opera Awards Ópera XXI Season 2022/23 | 22/10/2024 in Madrid
Award for the “Best Initiative or Project Contributing to the Promotion of Opera Activity. Opera La Gata Perduda, co-created by the Gran Teatre del Liceu and Barcelona's Raval neighborhood”
29th Amics del Liceu Awards for the Best Shows and Performers of the 2022-2023 Season | 04/06/2024 in Barcelona
Special Jury Prize: La Gata Perduda for the Gran Teatre del Liceu's sociocultural initiative bringing the Raval neighborhood into the Theater.
ALICIA Award 2023 | 21/06/2023
Nomination: ALICIA 2023 Award for the Gran Teatre del Liceu's social project La Gata Perduda
VI Edition of Barcelona Theater Awards 2022/2023 | 19/09/2023 in Barcelona
Liceu Nominations: La Gata Perduda, Alexina B, Il Trittico, Parsifal, La Torre dels Somnis.
Award for Best Opera Proposal granted to La Gata Perduda – Collective Creation
Time Out Culture Awards | 16/10/2023
La Gata Perduda was nominated for Best Social Cultural Initiative at the Time Out Culture Awards.
TRACTION European Support: TRACTION Project
La gata perduda was part of the European project TRACTION, Opera Co-creation for Social Transformation, a Research and Innovation project funded by the European Commission under the H2020 DT-Transformations-11-2019 call: Collaborative Approaches to Cultural Heritage for Social Cohesion. TRACTION is a project born from the collaboration between different European partners grouped in a consortium with the mission of bringing opera closer, through technological innovation, to people who, due to a vulnerable context, have limited access to it. With this common goal and under the leadership of the Basque foundation Centro de Tecnologías de Interacción Visual y Comunicaciones Vicomtech (VICOM), the Liceu and eight partners from five European countries in the fields of university research, technological innovation, and ethical commitment brought this premise to life.
