Opera
Liesel has a great love for the operatic form and while recognizing the difficulties, constraints and problems with the traditional repertoire, believes very much in the power of story told through song to connect with audiences and move people. She has worked in multiple capacities for Opera Australia, Australia’s leading opera company.
Director
Carmen (Cockatoo Island 2022)
“Opera Australia has reached new heights of artistic excellence…Director Liesel Badorrek strips away all the traditional paraphernalia…It works brilliantly”
— David Spicer, Stage Whispers
“Superbly staged…Badorrek’s approach – which changed only mood, not libretto or music – was a breathtaking signpost forward”
— Michael Bailey, Australian Financial Review
Ernani (Melbourne, 2022)
Madama Butterfly (Regional Tour, 2019)
Revival Director
Assistant Director
West Side Story (Handa Opera on Sydney Harbour, 2019)
Children’s Opera
All orchestrated by Robert Andrew Green and Designed by Mark Thompson.
Director and Librettist
El Kid (2016, 2023)
A mash-up of the Three Billy Goats Gruff.
“With Liesel Badorrek’s witty direction, the one-hour piece charges along with its cast of four energetic and comically adept performers. Be prepared for the impact because El Kid will shake you up. It may even be a call to action or self-examination. At the very least, it’s meaningful theatre wrapped in light operatic entertainment to charm the socks off kids and adults alike.”
– Paul Selar, Herald Sun.
Cinderella (2022)
A wild reimagining of the traditional fairytale set to the music of Rossini.
By the Light of the Moon (2022)
A jukebox opera of spoken verse and famous opera arias set in the nonsensical world of Edward Lear’s The Owl and The Pussycat