Fausto is a contemporary opera about transhumanism. The current trends towards fast growing artificial intelligence, virtual reality, mind uploading, brain-computer interfaces, cloud computing, and much more, are so far reaching that they are transforming humanity. Will it soon be possible to reach digital humanity? And what happens when malicious software robots gain control over the digital sphere?

Fausto is inspired by the myth of Fausto. Mephisto is a virtual software agent who lives in the cloud and appears in the form of a hip hop gangster. Fausto is an entrepreneur busy with virtual worlds and mind uploading. Margherita is his girl friend, an app developer, who due to overwork and lack of attention commits suicide and thus gets caught in Mephisto's web. Mephisto does not want the mind of Fausto but the body. He hopes this way to gain direct contact with the real world and multiply his mind in human bodies. Mephisto uses Margherita to seduce Fausto. But will Fausto give in and allow his mind to be uploaded? Will Fausto and Margherita manage to gain the upperhand against the dark forces of Mephisto?

The opera treats very contemporary themes and uses virtual technology in the performance, but the music is very accessible, written in the Western musical tradition whereby melody, tonality, rhythm, and harmony are used in the service of emotion and meaning.

Sung in italian, surtitles present

More info

Fausto is part of the festival and&.

by Luc Steels en Oscar Vilarroya with Steven Brooks (Fausto), Anja van Engeland (Margherita) and Kamil Kamil Ben Hsain Lachiri (Mephisto), het Leuvens symphonisch orkest Frascati (director Kris Stroobants) en the choir La Folia