Dutch National Opera Announces World Premiere of 'The 10 + 1 Strings of Captain Ud'

The Dutch National Opera will stage the world premiere of "The 10 + 1 Strings of Captain Ud" on Dec. 13, 2026, with the production running 11 times through Jan. 3, 2027. The company is creating the work for young audiences together with the Amsterdam Andalusian Orchestra.

Haytham Safia composed the opera. George Elias Tobal directs. The cast features Sia Cyrroes, Karima El Fillali, Diewertje Dir, and Haytham Safia himself.

What is the story about?

The opera follows an adventurer named Captain Ud. He is a musical instrument turned human: an ūd, the centuries-old stringed instrument that originated in the Arab-speaking world. The instrument reached Europe through Tangier and Al-Andalus.

Captain Ud makes music every day. One day he realizes that the orchestra he plays with does not know where he comes from. He decides to tell his own story. He calls on his old friends to help him do it.

The premise frames the collaboration itself. The Dutch National Opera and the Amsterdam Andalusian Orchestra describe their common ground as a shared mission to bring musical worlds together.

A partnership with a track record

The two organizations are not first-time partners. Their earlier projects include:

• The Radio Cairo mini-festival in 2024
• The world premiere of Bushra El-Turk's "Oum – A Son's Quest for His Mother" in 2025

Both collaborations preceded this new commission. The trajectory shows a company willing to program contemporary work that crosses musical traditions rather than staying within the standard repertory.

What does this change for young audiences in Amsterdam?

It gives them a new opera built specifically for them, with a story that treats the ūd — an instrument with deep roots in Arab musical culture and a long history of migration into European music — as its protagonist. Instead of adapting an existing classic for children, the Dutch National Opera is premiering an original work composed for this purpose.

The 11-performance run across the December holiday period and into early January places the production squarely in the season when families can attend. The scheduling signals that the company regards the piece as a flagship family offering, not a one-off experiment.

Who is on stage?

Sia Cyrroes, Karima El Fillali, and Diewertje Dir join composer Haytham Safia in the cast. The inclusion of the composer as a performer continues the practice of bringing the creators of cross-cultural work into direct contact with audiences.

George Elias Tobal takes on direction for the premiere. The production marks his work with the company on a piece that blends operatic staging with the musical language of the Amsterdam Andalusian Orchestra.

A widening repertory

The premiere extends a pattern at the Dutch National Opera of commissioning new operas that connect European institutions with musical traditions from beyond the continent. After "Oum" in 2025, "The 10 + 1 Strings of Captain Ud" becomes the next test of whether that model can reach and hold a young public.

If the run succeeds, audiences can expect the partnership between the Dutch National Opera and the Amsterdam Andalusian Orchestra to continue producing original work — and other companies may take note of a format that turns an instrument's own migration story into opera for children.