There’s no such thing as ghosts! Or is there? The Bürkli family from Zurich certainly don’t believe in them – until they one day find themselves in a gloomy old castle in Scotland. Georg Bürkli has bought an “old pile” to renovate and sell on – at a profit, of course. If only there weren’t that strange bloodstain on the floor, which reappears in exactly the same place as soon as it has been wiped away! The rattling of chains at night is also rather eerie, not to mention the ghostly draught that constantly blows throughout the castle. And hasn’t the portrait up there above the fireplace just moved? Indeed – for four hundred years, Sir Simon, the Canterville Ghost, has been haunting these walls, which themselves are at least that age! But the ghost seems to have seen better days; only Mrs Umney, the resident housekeeper, really finds the spectre frightening. For their part, Georg’s sons, the twins Leon and Noël, enjoy scaring the poor ghost; Virginia, Georg’s daughter, even takes pity on poor Sir Simon, for he is condemned to haunt the castle for all eternity, although he is in fact terribly tired and would much rather die… After Die Schatzinsel (Treasure Island), Das Gespenst von Canterville (The Canterville Ghost) is the second world première of a children’s opera on our programme. This time, the music has been written by the Berlin composer Marius Felix Lange – he is also a film composer and has considerable experience of conjuring up a creepy, ghostly atmosphere with music. Horror fans from the age of six – and anyone else who would like to be – have something to look forward to!