Eros, Europa and The Intersex Human
A Teen Love Opera

Composer: Nicholas Lens
Libretto: Nicholas Lens (in English)

135 min
Cast: 8 singers
Orchestration: symphony or chamber orchestra

“The Teen Love opera EROS, EUROPA, AND THE INTERSEX HUMAN was written when the composer was seventeen years old (and so a teen himself) during an orchestra tour in the States (the young composer suddenly had plenty of free time: his double bass instrument was lost at the airport and did not make it to the USA). The composer forgot about the score and found it back four decades later in old boxes during moving to another house. He was troubled: or throw that basic score away, or finish it - however with this one difficulty, the need to stay in the same juvenile and naïve fresh spirit of the teenage young (minimalistic) composer he was at the time. 

On his mission to Earth Eros discovers and falls deeply in love with a young most graceful and elegant creature, the mysterious mortal Psyche, an intersex human with two sexes. But also the goddess Europa, is secretly but madly in love with Psyche. And then there is Aphrodite, Eros’ mother, sick of jealousy of the lover of her son. Psyche was only looking for a simple form of happiness, but is now confronted with a situation with Eros, Europa, and Aphrodite. As well the intersex nature of Psyche’s being is suddenly most confusing. For the graceful mortal it looks like all is developing into a matter of life and death. Psyche’s position as an independent mortal without any power towards the gods becomes most precarious.”