A solo show written and performed by Sylvia Milo, directed by Isaac Byrne, it tells the true story of this prodigy, a keyboard virtuoso and composer, who as a child toured through all of Europe performing with her brother, to equal acclaim, but who faded away and left behind nothing of her own.

How could we have lost the other Mozart?

Using Nannerl’s own letters and those of her family, the performance investigates how this female prodigy, this Mozart, faded from the world – and whether this loss was inevitable.

The show is set in, on, and underneath its costume: a stunning dress, eighteen feet in diameter, created to fill and spill over the entire stage.

Original music was composed for the play by Nathan Davis (whose portrait concert takes place at the Spoleto Festival on June 2nd) and Phyllis Chen (both recent Fromm commission recipients and members of the International Contemporary Ensemble – currently in residence at the Mostly Mozart Festival at Lincoln Center) for instruments Nannerl knew intimately, such as clavichords, music boxes, and bells, as well as teacups, fans, and other ordinary objects that might have captured her imagination.

With the opulent beauty of the dress and hair design, the sweet smells of perfume, and the clouds of dusting powder rising from the stage, the performance creates a multi-sensual experience and transports the audience into a world of outsized beauty and delight — but also of overwhelming restrictions and prejudice. There, in communion with the audience, this other Mozart at last tells her story.

The Other Mozart
Written, performed by Sylvia Milo
Directed by Isaac Byrne
Costumes by Magdalena Dabrowska, Miodrag Guberinic
Music composed by  Nathan Davis, Phyllis Chen  (additional music by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Marianna Martines)

Running Time: 70 mins