Bangkok Opera Foundation, a registered nonprofit under the patronage of HRH Princess Galyani Vadhana proudly presents “Ayodhya” The Ramayana Finds a New Medium.

Somtow Sucharitkul's new opera, Ayodhya, was created to honour a very special King, one who shares the name and attributes of the legendary hero of Asian mythology.

It is the world's first grand opera based on the Ramayana, the most famous epic poem of Asia . It is the first new retelling of the work for the stage that touches upon the entire epic, from the abduction of Sita by the demon Ravana, through the battle between gods, demons, men, and monkeys, to the death of Ravana, the return to the kingdom of Ayodhya, and the denouement from the rarely-discussed Seventh Book of the Ramayana … all the way to the final ascent of Rama and Sita to Mount Krailash in order to set in motion the next cycle of the universe.

The subject matter of this opera is so vast that no attempt has ever been made to tell the entire story in a single evening. But Ayodhya uses modern narrative techniques of flashback, allegory and dance to move the story along, and finds a fresh viewpoint, seeing the epic poem from the point of view of Sita, its heroine.

>> Cast of Thai and International Celebrities
One of Europe 's most celebrated opera directors, Hans Nieuwenhuis, founder of the Netherlands Opera Studio, has agreed to come on board to bring to life Somtow Sucharitkul's exotic score. His talents will be matched by designer Chatvichai Prohmadhattavedi, the visionary behind such well-known Thai spectacles as the Siam Niramit and the Phuket Phantasea.

The cast of the opera includes Michael Chance, in the pivotal role of the god Ganesha, patron of music and literature. Southeast Asia 's most popular diva, Nancy Yuen, plays the role of Sita, and velvety bass John Ames plays Ravan. The cast also includes a virtual who's who of celebrated Thai opera stars including Saran Suesbantiwongse as Hanuman.

The Orpheus Choir of Bangkok will be augmented to almost one hundred singers and there will be an additional

corps de ballet, boys' chorus, and children's chorus together with a 100-piece orchestra, for a total of about four hundred performers. There have already been some inquiries about international telecasting, and a large feature about this production is about to appear in the next issue of Opera Now magazine in the U.K. one of the most influential magazines about opera.

>> International Co-production
The Bangkok Opera is cooperating with the Netherlands Opera Studio to produce Somtow's opera, with further performances planned in Europe and North America .The Bangkok Opera has created this project under the royal patronage of HRH Princess Galyani Vadhana and His Majesty has graciously acknowledged the dedication of the opera, the proposal for which was presented to His Majesty earlier this year by the Royal Secretary. It is expected that several high-ranking Royal Personages will be invited to the Royal Command Performance of the opera and that it will be a major social event of the latter half of 2006.

Official Website: http://www.bangkokopera.com