Conductor

Hansel and Gretel, children of a poor broom maker and his wife, are sent into the woods one day by their mother to pick berries – as punishment for larking around instead of doing their chores. When their father arrives home bearing a bag full of treats after a successful working day, he berates his wife, because the woods are home to an evil witch. The parents set off to look for the kids, who have meanwhile filled their baskets but then eaten all the berries themselves out of sheer hunger. They also realise darkness has fallen and they’re lost, so they lie down for the night and say their prayers, falling asleep and having a strange and wonderful dream. In the morning they wake to see a cottage made of gingerbread and other sweetmeats. Nibbling at the house, they are surprised by the witch, who takes them captive, planning to bake the children in her oven. Instead, they play a trick on her and push her into her own oven. The spell is broken and all the children who had been transformed into gingerbread by the witch regain their human form. The pair’s parents appear and the reunited family returns home.

Hansel and Gretel

Deutsche Oper Berlin

When the days get shorter, the temperatures drop, we need hats, scarves, and gloves, and our breath creates clouds in the air—then one of the most wonderful times of the year begins! Soon the first delicate snowflakes fall, becoming thicker and softer, and finally the snow lies so deep that we can have snowball fights, build snow huts, and snowmen. And if you make friends with one of these snowmen, you can learn a lot of things you never even imagined! Because a snowman is much more than just three round snowballs stacked on top of each other.

The Journey of the Snowflakes

Bonn Opera House

For over a century, Engelbert Humperdinck's fairy-tale opera “Hänsel and Gretel” has been enchanting generations of young opera-goers. Not insignificantly, the premiere of this work took place on the night before Christmas Eve. To this day, this beloved opera is performed near Christmastime in many opera houses. After all, Christmas is a time for family, and »Hänsel and Gretel« is a family opera par excellence: While their children's eyes widen in wonder at their first opera experience, parents can reminisce and delight in nostalgia. In this new production, director Birgit Eckenweber, together with her set and costume designer Alexander Mudlagk, sends Hansel and Gretel into a fantastical fairy-tale world that's guaranteed to fascinate. Ah, to be young again!

Oper Leipzig

The milk jug is broken, and the precious cream has spilled onto the floor. And the stocking knitting and broom binding are far from finished. In her anger, the mother has sent her two children, Hansel and Gretel, into the nearby forest to pick strawberries. At the beginning of the second part of the first act – this is where the music begins in the auditorium – the two children are alone in the springtime forest. The flowers are blooming, the wind is blowing through the pine trees and sweet fruits are plentiful. It's a wonderful way to spend the day. As evening falls, the children have lost their way. To keep them from getting too scared in the eerie forest, the Sandman appears.

What's coming up? ... Hansel and Gretel, Act 1, Part 2

Calaf has solved Princess Turandot's riddles. But Turandot categorically refuses to marry the stranger, so Calaf offers her a way out. If she knows his name by the next day, he will kill himself and she will remain unmarried. And so an entire country sets out in search of this one name, and no one is allowed to sleep that night: ‘Nessun dorma’. In this act, you will experience how love can still blossom from this situation.

What's coming up? ... Turandot, Act 3

The Parisian demi-monde is celebrating wildly in the salons of the courtesan Violetta Valéry. Alfredo Germont enters the hall, and with him the love he celebrates in his famous drinking song. Violetta, who has never experienced such romantic, fiery affection, is torn between responding and fear. In this first act of Giuseppe Verdi's melodramma, the opera hits flow seamlessly into one another, from exuberant choruses to grand duets and finally the famous ‘È strano! è strano!’ sung by the title heroine.

What's coming up? ... La traviata, Act 1

Rigoletto, the hated and feared courtyard jester at the court of Mantua, has tried everything to keep the existence of his beloved daughter secret from the womanising Duke and the cynical court society. But to no avail: Gilda has fallen in love with the Duke. So, at the beginning of the third act, Rigoletto sees only one way out: to confront his daughter with the Duke's erotic excesses. At the end of the third act, Rigoletto will have lost everything, and only the Duke's ‘La donna è mobile’ echoes through the night.

What's coming up? ... Rigoletto, Act 3

Prince Tamino falls head over heels in love with Princess Pamina when he receives her picture as a gift. Pamina's love for the Prince is awakened when she hears the tales of Papageno, the bird catcher, with whom she then sings a love duet, Papageno standing in for Tamino. However, these two children of royal blood have a few obstacles to surmount before they can be united. Fortunately there's always music in the meantime: Tamino is given a magic flute that can tame wild animals, and Papageno has a musical instrument, a glockenspiel of magic chimes.

The Fairy Tale of the Magic Fute

It’s a rambunctious tale: an old curmudgeon is set on marrying his own ward of court with a view to snapping up her considerable inheritance. He leaves no stone unturned in his efforts to keep the fair Rosina cloistered from the outside world and thus from any potential young suitors. A pity, then, that Count Almaviva has fallen head over heels for her. Assisted by Figaro, an enterprising barber, he plans to outwit the old man, win over Rosina – and ensure that it’s love that attracts her to him rather than his rank and wealth. Not an easy job for Figaro, seeing as the opposite camp is scheming with equal tenacity … Love wins out in the end, and it turns out that all precautions were useless!

The Barber of Seville

Violetta Valery, living in kept splendour at the expense of Baron Douphol, has apparently recovered from a serious illness. To celebrate, she throws a party where she meets and falls for Alfredo Germont. As their love for each other is frowned upon, they set up house outside of Paris. Alfredo’s father insists that she break with his son in order not to jeopardise the marriage prospects of Alfredo’s sister. Violetta accedes to his wish and cuts off relations. In a showdown at another party Violetta tries to convince Alfredo that she’s in love with the Baron, causing Alfredo to hurl his gambling winnings at her feet, calling them “fees for services rendered”. Soon afterwards, at the height of the Paris carnival, Violetta is on her deathbed. She receives Alfredo, who has heard from his father her real reason for leaving him. Violetta forgives him, gives him her blessing and dies.

La traviata

It’s the most performed opera in the German-speaking region, an unusual – and masterly – blend of Viennese folk theatre and fairy tale, mythology and freemasonry mystique: Mozart’s THE MAGIC FLUTE remains a puzzle to this day. Did Mozart and his librettist Schikaneder switch horses from the Queen of the Night to Sarastro half way through? Is the message not one of distrust towards a supposedly infallible priesthood and its simplistic good-versus-evil ideology? Are some Mozart experts right when they talk of a disconnect between text and music? Whatever the answer, it’s the music that allows us to relate to the story’s contradictions. Far from denouncing the characters, it confers an existentiality on their conflicts.

The Magic Flute

Between sonic power and subtle wit, Brahms's Tragic Overture unfolds a dark, passionate soundscape that deeply moves the listener. This is followed by Strauss's Don Juan , an opulent firework display of drama and sensuality that musically brings the world of the legendary seducer to life. In subito con forza , we encounter a stark, high-contrast reflection on Beethoven – explosive and captivating. Finally, Beethoven himself appears in his Eighth Symphony, winking and surprising, virtuosic and anything but tame.

4th Symphony Concert

Theater tent at Küchengarten

This narrated concert brings Ludwig van Beethoven's powerful 8th Symphony to the stage – a work full of energy and vibrant melodies. Young listeners will learn how Beethoven conquered the world with his music. For everyone who wants to discover music in a new way.

Conductor

Friedrich Praetorius

Events

Upcoming events

10 - 12 Apr, 2026

4th Symphony Concert · Mecklenburgisches Staatstheater

Apr 13, 2026

School concert for the 4th Symphony Concert · Mecklenburgisches Staatstheater

Past events

Dec 11, 2025 - Jan 2, 2026

Hansel and Gretel · Deutsche Oper Berlin

Dec 7, 2025

The Journey of the Snowflakes · Beethoven Orchester Bonn

Future and recently performed repertoire

Conductor in La traviata by Verdi

Deutsche Oper Berlin

Conductor in Symphony No. 8 by Beethoven

Mecklenburgisches Staatstheater

Conductor in Turandot by Puccini

Deutsche Oper Berlin

Conductor in Hansel and Gretel by Humperdinck

Oper Leipzig

Conductor in subito con forza by Chin

Mecklenburgisches Staatstheater

Conductor in The Magic Flute by Mozart

Deutsche Oper Berlin

Conductor in La traviata by Verdi

Deutsche Oper Berlin

Conductor in Rigoletto by Verdi

Deutsche Oper Berlin

Conductor in Hansel and Gretel by Humperdinck

Deutsche Oper Berlin

Conductor in The Barber of Seville by Rossini

Deutsche Oper Berlin

Conductor in Symphony No. 8 in F major by Beethoven

Mecklenburgisches Staatstheater

Conductor in Tragic Overture in D minor by Brahms

Mecklenburgisches Staatstheater

Conductor in The Snowman by Korngold

Beethoven Orchester Bonn

Conductor in Don Juan , Symphonic Poem by Strauss

Mecklenburgisches Staatstheater

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