Singer

When the young Handel was working on his Agrippina, which is to be performed this year at Halle Opera, he also lifted whole sections from the score of Octavia by his former superior in Hamburg, Reinhard Keiser – here, for the first time, you have the opportunity of comparing the two works. One point of interest is that the two title characters are the mother and first wife of the Roman emperor, Nero, who won legendary status as a persecutor of Christians, untalented musician and arsonist. In Keiser’s opera, Octavia, who is being urged by her husband Nero to commit suicide, uses cunning to save her life. On the advice of the philosopher Seneca, she appears to Nero as her own ghost and succeeds in making him relent.

EPSG:4326

Octavia

Goethe Theatre Bad Lauchstädt

The celebrated singer Tosca lives only for art, until political intrigue suddenly disturbs her life and that of her lover, the painter Cavaradossi: When Cavaradossi hides the political refugee Angelotti, he is targeted by the unscrupulous police chief Scarpia, who has long had his eye on Tosca. To save Cavaradossi, Tosca not only has to betray Angelotti, but also give herself to Scarpia. Premiered in 1900, Puccini’s »Tosca« is practically unique in its close interweaving of political power and personal passions. The German premiere of this opera about love, jealousy, betrayal and tyranny was held in Dresden in 1902. Director Johannes Schaaf has found a timeless narrative style for his staging.

Tosca

Semperoper Dresden

Ruth Reinhardt was educated in both the violin and in the children's choir at the opera in Saarbrücken, and conducted other young people in an opera she had composed herself when she was only 17. She has conducted many orchestras in the United States and Europe; orchestras that know the broad repertoire, but also manage to create the slender sound we now associate with baroque music.  It is mastered by Ruth Reinhardt, who has been praised for, among other things, that

Bass

Magnus Piontek

Events

Past events

7 - 9 Jun, 2025

Octavia · Händel-Festspiele Halle

Apr 5 - May 1, 2025

Tosca · Semperoper Dresden

Future and recently performed repertoire

Seneca in Octavia by Keiser

Händel-Festspiele Halle

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