Heroin Chic: Solveig Sørbø's Daring New Opera Takes on Addiction, Identity and Death

Opera isn't all period costumes and tragic heroines in corsets. Heroin Chic, the bold new opera by Norwegian composer Solveig Sørbø, tackles addiction, identity, sexuality and death head-on, in a sound world its creators call maximalist, colourful and hypnotic. After acclaimed stage performances in Romania and Norway, the complete 90-minute work is out now on Solsnu, on digital, double CD and double vinyl.

A standing ovation in Romania, a sell-out in Oslo

Heroin Chic had its concert premiere in Romania in February 2025, where an audience of 500 gave it a standing ovation. Critics praised its eclectic sound, philosophical depth and emotional punch. Romanian culture magazine Revista Migalo said it "struck the collective psyche", while Norwegian newspaper Klassekampen called it a "danse macabre".

In February 2026 it reached Oslo's Parkteatret as part of the Klassisk på Park series. The sold-out show featured some of Norway's leading classical performers, live visuals by Franciska Eliassen and several staged moments, and it ended with an afterparty with DJ Roland Lifjell. Not your usual night at the opera. Norwegian music magazine Ballade even compared Sørbø's determination to get the project made to that of cross-country skiing champion Johannes Høsflot Klæbo.

The story of Elise

Based on the novel by Norwegian writer Maria Kjos Fonn, who also wrote the libretto, the opera follows Elise, a young woman consumed by an obsessive longing for death and transcendence. Raised by an overprotective mother who sees her as almost saintly, she is torn between innocence, sexuality and her growing sense of who she is.

Searching for a way to express the darkness inside her, Elise adopts the heroin-chic look and runs away from home. She falls for a rocker, Joakim, who draws her deeper into drugs, while "D", a manifestation of her destructive subconscious, pushes her further still. Over two acts her journey takes in anorexia, addiction, exploitation, a fractured identity and rehab, as the lines between reality and fantasy, life and death blur. The ending deliberately leaves you asking what you've just witnessed: death, resurrection or a drug-induced dream.

A score that breaks the rules

The music is just as unconventional as the story. There's a powerful, hypnotic percussion section, one of the largest soprano roles for a child singer in all of opera, and a striking reinvention of the cimbalom in a contemporary classical setting. Captivating melodies sit alongside an eclectic orchestral landscape, drawing on the avant-garde and pop culture alike.

Recorded live in a single day

Just two days after the Oslo premiere, the whole opera was recorded live to tape at Jar Church outside Oslo. Capturing 90 minutes of opera in one day was no small feat, but it keeps all the immediacy and intensity of the stage performances.

The recording features soloists Susanna Wolff, Sofia Neacsu, Siv Misund, Ivar Magnus Sandve and Johannes Nikolai Aas with Ensemble Oslo, conducted by Hans Petter Mæhle. It was engineered and produced by Trond Kjelsås of LydFest.

The details

• Opera: Heroin Chic
• Composer: Solveig Sørbø
• Librettist: Maria Kjos Fonn
• Performers: Ensemble Oslo, conducted by Hans Petter Mæhle
• Length: 90 minutes
• Label: Solsnu
• Released: 16 October 2026, on digital, 2CD and 2xVinyl

Find out more at solveigsorbo.com, listen here, and follow Solveig Sørbø on Instagram, Facebook and Linktree.