Danish author has rented the Opera for his own money and nearly sold out his shows

Danish Author Rents Opera for Own Money and Nearly Sells Out Shows

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Mazen Ismail, a Danish author, has taken unconventional measures to tell his and other young people's stories.

He has rented the Opera in Copenhagen, where he stands behind two nearly sold-out performances on Sunday.

With no funds, no sponsors, and no wealthy patrons, Mazen Ismail has emptied his savings to lease the Opera.

"I haven't received a penny from anywhere," he says.

If he hadn't had the courage to invest his own money in the project, it could have been just as well, it sounds like.

Go big and go home, thought Mazen Ismail, when the choice fell on the Opera as the venue for his show.

The show itself, titled 'If We Survive Tonight', has two legs. One is Mazen Ismail's own show - a coming-of-age journey inspired by his own life, he says.

"From childhood war experiences to youth life in Denmark, from love's fragility to society's conflicts, Mazen transforms his life into an intense, musical live storytelling," reads the description.

The other leg of the show, which Mazen Ismail came up with in August 2022, is filled by five young people who, through workshops, were selected to tell their personal stories.

"They have a longing to be heard. A voice that has been buried for a long time, but that really wants to unfold creatively," he says.

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How much does it cost to rent the Opera?

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Mazen Ismail came to Denmark as a refugee with a Lebanese and Palestinian background. He has lived in asylum centers, been expelled from several schools, and has been in conflict with the law as a young person. He was previously honored by the Danish Arts Foundation with the award for 'Best Annual Publication' for his texts in the live show 'How We Take Over Denmark'.

Why did you choose the Opera exactly? Did you just think go big or go home?

"Well, you put it so nicely yourself. I didn't need to spend my money on champagne in the city, I just wanted to live out the dream and at the same time give my voice to young people," says Mazen Ismail.

How did it work out practically? Did you contact the Opera yourself?

"Yes. I wrote and called until I got in touch with the people I needed to speak to. It took a week, and then I told them about my dream, and what I wanted, and what it would cost and all the things. So they just had to approve the things I had done earlier. It went very well, when they saw my material."

How much did it cost?

"I can't tell you that, because it's contracted."

But it can't have been cheap. The official price for renting the Opera's large stage, which has a capacity of around 1,700 people, is 290,000 DKK, as can be seen here ( https://kglteater.dk/brug-teatret/erhverv/moder-og-events2/lokaliteter/operaen-store-scene?section=48133 ).

Both shows were actually sold out, but a handful of extra tickets have been released at the last minute, if you want to get into the Opera.

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Warning: This article was translated by a Large Language Model, in case of doubt, you can always visit the original source.