LA RONDINE is one of Puccini's more uncommonly performed operas. The work was originally planned as an operetta. But while working on the piece, Puccini elected for the through-composed form of an opera, although it is much lighter, more lyrical and less dramatic than TOSCA or TURANDOT. With Ermonela Jaho and Charles Castronovo et al. ... On 23 February 2019

Society lives in terror of a Princess. Turandot, the fascinating and beautiful representative of a ruling dynasty, presides over the cruelty. Matrimony alone seems likely to end the violence, yet no suitor has managed to solve her riddles and win her hand. Time and again the same scene is played out, ending in yet another execution. Against all expectations, Calaf, son of an exiled potentate from a far-off country, breaks the mould. On 22 February 2019 ... With Anna Smirnova as Turandot.

Claus Guth is an acknowledged expert when it comes to plumbing the depths of human psychology, coining symbols and choreographing people’s actions to a ‘t’. His SALOME dispenses with sultry eroticism against an Oriental backdrop and is set instead in the ostensibly idyllic 1950s. A drama of souls played out onstage. With Allison Oakes, Thomas Blondelle, Gabriele Schnaut and Michael Volle ... On 24 February 2019

Czar Boris, one of the most striking characters in the history of opera - an intelligent ruler and benevolent father, who came to the throne by dint of sound leadership, a smart marriage but also the murder of a child. With Sir Bryn Terfel as Boris Godunov ... On 6 March 2019

»I desire nothing that forms part of the so-called Grand Opera. I am looking for an intimate but forceful drama that derives from a conflict that really touches me. Not that I scorn the fantastic at all; the fantastic knows no obstacles since the realm of fantasy knows no limits.« (Tschaikowskij). On 7 March 2019 ... With Etienne Dupuis, Nicole Car, Vasilisa Berzhanskaya, Matthew Newlin et al.

Amina, a poor orphan, and Elvino, the richest farmer in the village, are looking forward to their wedding. But when Amina is caught in the room of Count Rodolfo, who has recently returned after a long absence, this idyll in the Swiss Alps collapses … On 19 May 2019

For better or worse, despite his grotesque physique, the hunchbacked jester-hero has to get his audience laughing. His daughter Gilda seems angelic by contrast - and yet human through and through in her unconditional love and self-sacrifice. With Markus Brück, Siobhan Stagg and Yijie Shi ... On 27 April 2019