Opera

This Tosca-production is deserved of listed status after a performance history stretching back over half a century. more

Puccini‘s »Japanese tragedy« is more than simply one of the supremely emotional works of musical theatre; it is also unsparingly critical of imperialism as a system. more

New opera material for a new time - this was not only sought by the avant-gardists in the 1920s. Old master Richard Strauss went even further and brought not only a story from the modern world, but also,... more

Hofmannsthal wrote to Strauss in 1911 that the new opera was to ZAUBERFLÖTE as the ROSENKAVALIER was to FIGARO. And indeed, much in this work is reminiscent of Mozart's "grand opera": the encounter between... more

Claus Guth banishes all orientalism and looks at his title heroine with a dissecting, psychoanalytical eye. Salome descends into the abysses of her youth, in which abuses by her stepfather have dug deep... more

Princess Turandot does not want to be anyone’s bride. And she is willing to do anything to protect her independence. Her strategy so far for ridding herself of burdensome suitors has been this: anyone... more

A historicised staging forms the backdrop for Lucia's tragedy, which is negotiated as a pledge of military alliances. Her heart belongs to Edgardo, the mortal enemy of her brother Enrico, who has other... more

In Benedikt von Peter’s production of Verdi’s pharaonic opera, exotic Egypt is only visible as a dreamworld depicted on postcards. In this version of the work, which occupies the entire auditorium, the... more

This cheerful, melancholy work about a cunning vixen is not called a "Czech Midsummer Night's Dream" for nothing. The figures of the animal and human worlds are closely interwoven here to create an allegory... more

Zemlinsky's DER ZWERG tells the double drama of a man of small stature: his disability makes him the object of ridicule and contempt by society, and the fact that he himself is unaware of his disability... more

In setting »La Dame aux Camélias« to music, Verdi explored, in a shockingly direct way, two big themes of the 19th century: prostitution and consumption. Götz Friedrich’s production stresses the futility... more

Impressive songs and colossal tableaux accompany a story of intrigue, power struggles and an affair between stepmother and son in Ottorino Respighi's last great opera. Surrounded by political battles,... more