Kaspars Rolšteins’ bicycle opera In the Switzerland of Courland brought together experimental music, absurd theatre and spy fiction in a work that felt somewhere between performance art, opera and fever dream.
Set in a fictional version of Sabile - transformed into the “Switzerland of Courland” through GPS interference and secret-agent mythology - the opera followed a surreal chain of events involving rival organizations, professional cyclists and a battle over a secret tied to the future of civilization itself. Across its three acts, the audience entered Rolšteins’ distinctly personal world where documentary fragments, memories and absurdity coexisted without clear borders.
The music itself was developed over three years, continuing the sonic ideas Rolšteins and Hardijs Lediņš first explored decades ago in Rolstein On The Beach and Ideal Standard. Familiar names from Latvia’s experimental music scene shared the stage with first-time opera performers, creating an unusual cast where established artists and newcomers occupied the same territory.
A particularly memorable moment came from the appearance of Māris Žigats of Pienvedēja Piedzīvojumi, reconnecting with Rolšteins through a shared history that stretches back to their school years in Sabile.
Rather than following the conventions of dramatic opera, In the Switzerland of Courland approached the stage as an open performance environment. Through experimental sound, visual language and a storyline that constantly balanced between fiction and autobiography, the work created a world that was strange, playful and impossible to place within a single category.
Produced by Artes Liberales, In the Switzerland of Courland brought together experimental music, absurd theatre and spy fiction in a work that felt somewhere between performance art, opera and fever dream.
