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Giacomo Puccini composed his Il trittico as a triptych of one-act plays in which shudder, sadness and laughter are successively evoked. The three short operas are now being performed together for the first time at Dutch National Opera and are the culmination of the three-year Puccini series by conductor Lorenzo Viotti and director Barrie Kosky .

Il trittico

National Opera & Ballet

"The Magic Flute" is one of the most enigmatic masterpieces in the history of opera. Mozart's last opera transports the listener to a world of magic, trials, and mysterious symbols, telling a story of the search for inner strength, maturity, and the overcoming of fears. Between light and shadow, a universal interplay of human experiences unfolds – carried by Mozart's profound music and its compelling appeal to humanity. The new production is directed by Daniele Finzi Pasca from Ticino, whose poetic stage language uniquely blends theater, acrobatics, and circus. 

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The Magic Flute

Opernhaus Zürich

A bottle labeled "Drink me!" that shrinks you, a cake that makes you grow immeasurably after you eat it, a Mad Hatter who celebrates his unbirthday 364 days a year – these and many other curious adventures await Alice after she follows a rabbit and falls down a hole. Is it all really just a dream? Lewis Carroll's classic children's book has captivated generations of theater and filmmakers, including the Italian composer Pierangelo Valtinoni. His poetic music, as well as Nadja Loschky's imaginative and fast-paced direction, thrilled audiences at the Zurich premiere.

Alice in Wonderland

With "Manon Lescaut," Giacomo Puccini established a series of tragic female figures in whom passionate devotion and existential despair are intertwined. In four large, cinematically edited scenes, he depicts the stages of the title character's life: her intoxicating love for the student Des Grieux, a life in luxurious Parisian society, and finally, exile and death in an American desert. Director Barrie Kosky underscores the fleeting nature of this life by presenting the narrative as a continuous, feverish journey: Death is already on the coachman's seat at Manon and Des Grieux's first encounter. Following her acclaimed Tosca, soprano Sonya Yoncheva returns to the Zurich Opera House as Manon.

Manon Lescaut

A gold rush camp in California: here, only the strongest prevail. Minnie's Bar becomes a refuge for a society without firm social norms. When Minnie falls in love with the bandit Johnson, the fragile order finally crumbles. In her production of Giacomo Puccini's Western opera, director Lydia Steier paints a picture of a community marked by isolation and violence, where the spiral of brutality turns relentlessly. Marco Armiliato conducts the richly textured score. Anja Kampe, Jonas Kaufmann, and Tomasz Konieczny star in the leading roles.

La fanciulla del west

Giuseppe Verdi's "Don Carlo" unites political power struggles and unrequited passion in a monumental operatic drama. The Spanish Infante Carlos loves the French princess Elisabetta. When his father, King Philip II, marries her for political reasons, Carlos comes into conflict with the ruler. Against the backdrop of the atrocities of the Spanish Inquisition and the Flanders War of Independence, Giuseppe Verdi created a work that is as moving as it is highly dramatic. Petr Popelka, one of the rising stars of the younger generation of conductors, returns to the podium of the Zurich Opera Orchestra. Lise Davidsen sings Elisabetta di Valois.

Tenor

Salvador Villanueva

Events

Upcoming events

Sep 20, 2026 - Apr 23, 2027

The Magic Flute · Opernhaus Zürich

Nov 8, 2026 - Jan 17, 2027

Alice in Wonderland · Opernhaus Zürich

11 - 26 Dec, 2026

Manon Lescaut · Opernhaus Zürich

Feb 25 - Apr 16, 2027

La fanciulla del west · Opernhaus Zürich

1 - 11 Jul, 2027

Don Carlo · Opernhaus Zürich

Past events

3 - 19 May, 2024

Il trittico · Nationale Opera & Ballet

Future and recently performed repertoire

Il maestro di ballo in Manon Lescaut by Puccini

Opernhaus Zürich

A postilion in La Fanciulla del West by Puccini

Opernhaus Zürich

March hare / Tweedledee in Alice in Wonderland by Chin

Opernhaus Zürich

Second Priest in The Magic Flute by Mozart

Opernhaus Zürich

The Count of Lerma in Don Carlo by Verdi

Opernhaus Zürich

About

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