Production Director

For his first commission for the Paris Opéra Verdi demanded a libretto that was “immense, passionate and original”. What he eventually got from star author Eugène Scribe was a text whose political edginess rivalled the grand opéras of Giacomo Meyerbeer, with whom Scribe had collaborated on LES HUGUENOTS and LE PROPHETE. Like these two works, LES VÊPRES SICILIENNES explored a subject that was not only historical but also highly topical. Parallels could easily be drawn between the “Sicilian Vespers” uprising in 1282 against the island’s French occupiers and the most conspicuous of France’s mid-19th-century expansionist ventures, the conquest and colonialization of Algeria, which began in 1830 and was dogged by an ongoing series of brutally quelled revolts.

Les Vêpres Siciliennes

Deutsche Oper Berlin

Outside, scaffolds rise in city squares as priests, nobles, and political prisoners face the merciless blade of the guillotine. The aristocrat Blance de la Force had hoped the convent would serve as a sanctuary. But now, death is at the sisters' doorstep. And one by one, their faith will be tested.
Francis Poulenc’s profound drama returns to San Francisco in honor of the Company’s U.S. premiere of the work in 1957. Olivier Py’s award-winning staging pairs striking tableaus with Poulenc’s haunting, poetic score conducted by Music Director Eun Sun Kim.

EPSG:4326

Dialogues of the Carmelites

Segerstrom Center for the Arts

"If you travel to India and to Central Africa, you'll hear Trovatore.“ Nine years after the triumphant first performance, Verdi's opera had achieved the worldwide popularity that moved the composer to make this comment. The fabric of the opera could hardly be more gloomy: a gypsy who wishes to avenge the death of her mother at the stake, a count who wishes to use the execution of this gypsy to strike at his rival; a horrifying truth that is revealed at the moment of death. All the ingredients of Verdi's dramatic abundance appear here: mysterious sound worlds, harsh contrasts, vocal brilliance, opulent tableaux. The cohesive narrative style gives way to the variation of suggestive musical images with which Verdi served "the most important part of the drama“: revenge.

Production Director

Olivier Py

Events

Upcoming events

Apr 26 - May 9, 2026

Il Trovatore · Bayerische Staatsoper

Past events

18 - 31 May, 2025

Les Vêpres Siciliennes · Deutsche Oper Berlin

15 - 30 Oct, 2022

Dialogues of the Carmelites · San Francisco Opera

About

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