The Fall of the House of Commons

The Fall of the House of Commons is a contemporary chamber opera with music by Orestis Papaioannou, first staged at the Athens Epidaurus Festival in 2023. The Greek National Opera revived the work in revised form on its Alternative Stage at the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Centre for five performances on 3, 4, 8, 10 and 11 May 2025. The stage direction of the revival was by Alexandros Efklidis and the musical direction by Michalis Papapetrou.

The libretto, by Alekos Lountzis and Orfeas Apergis on a concept by Lountzis, is loosely drawn from Poe’s The Fall of the House of Usher. The work sets a fracturing couple inside a contemporary apartment watched over by an android supervisor, Erika_7. The score moves between classical and postmodern idioms for a six-player ensemble of trumpet, saxophone and clarinet, trombone, percussion, synthesiser and double bass. The cast comprised Chrissa Maliamani as the android, Georgios Iatrou and Miranda Makrynioti as the couple, and Alexios Zervanos as the Debater.

The Alternative Stage is the Greek National Opera’s studio for new and experimental work, housed within the Renzo Piano–designed Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Centre on Faliro Bay.