Iiro Rantala’s Sanatorio Express in Frankfurt

The Frankfurt Chamber Opera is staging the German premiere of Sanatorio Express (Pikaparantola) by the internationally renowned Finnish composer and jazz pianist Iiro Rantala on 13–31 July. The libretto, by Minna Lindgren, has been translated into German. The opera (premiered by the Finnish National Opera in 2018) transports the audience to a bizarre sanatorium where a healing charlatan conducts his business with a motley crew of patients. Full of humour and highly accessible music, this opera lovingly follows the classical opera buffa.

Rantala’s latest opera, The Magic Melodica – a highly acclaimed sequel to Mozart’s Magic Flute – was premiered at the Komische Oper Berlin in 2021.