From a deep E-flat major chord, time and space are lifted, and on the waves of the Rhine, a world unfolds with gods, dwarves, giants and creatures of nature. However, the paradisiacal primordial state does not last long: After the Nibelung Alberich is spurned by the Rhinemaidens, he decides to renounce love forever and seize the gold from the depths of the Rhine. From this, he now forges a ring that grants him world power. But the father of the gods, Wotan, also wants to possess the ring. With the help of the fire god Loge, he actually succeeds in stealing the ring from Alberich. However, Alberich curses the ring: Misfortune shall befall its owner - a prophecy that will soon be fulfilled for the first, but not the last time. Richard Wagner created with DER RING DES NIBELUNGEN a parable about the origin and end of the world and realised his radical idea of a total work of art, in which text, music and stage action form a symbiosis. Wagner's endless melody and his leitmotif technique, which he had already developed in DER FLIEGENDE HOLLÄNDER and LOHENGRIN, reach an as yet unprecedented complexity in THE RING. With the creation of the RING tetralogy, Wagner also solidified the plan for his own festival theatre as a venue. At the request of his patron King Ludwig II, the premiere of RHEINGOLD took place on 22 September 1869 at the National Theatre of Munich. The audience, which was largely composed of professionals and art connoisseurs who had travelled from afar, expressed enthusiastic applause. Wagner's vision of performing the entire DER RING DES NIBELUNGEN  in his own festival theatre finally became a reality in 1876 in Bayreuth. Director Paul-Georg Dittrich, who has already introduced himself to Cologne with his production of DER ZWERG, will stage a new RING. In RHEINGOLD, he embarks on a search for the childlike origin of the world. What happens when free, yet unencumbered imagination is instrumentalised in a power-obsessed society? The musical direction is under the internationally sought-after conductor Marc Albrecht, who returns to the podium of the Gürzenich Orchestra after DIE FRAU OHNE SCHATTEN.

The Rhinegold

Cologne Opera

Siegfried, the son of Siegmund and Sieglinde, is young and dynamic an. Raised by the devious Nibelung dwarf, Mime, he does not know his parents. All that remains of his father are fragments of a sword. Siegfried forges its steel into a new, powerful weapon with which he slays the dragon Fafner. Fafner had been guarding the ring that Siegfried now takes for himself. And he wins over Brünnhilde, whom he awakens from sleep.

Siegfried

Bebelplatz

Together with Papageno, he sets off on his journey. In the course of his undertaking, Tamino recognizes Sarastro's kindness. He passes several tests and, together with Pamina, is allowed to take Sarastro's place as a reward. Papageno also finds a suitable partner: Papagena.

Die Zauberflöte

Vienna State Opera

Fleeing from a snake, Prince Tamino enters the realm of the Queen of the night. Three ladies rescue him and are fascinated by him. As the bird catcher Papageno claims to have defeated the serpent, they punish his boasting and put a lock on his mouth. Tamino receives a picture of Pamina, the abducted daughter of the Queen, immediately falls in love with her and vows to rescue her. With a magic flute and a set of bells, Tamino and Papageno set off and face all dangers.

The Magic Flute

1968: Students and civil rights movements demonstrate worldwide in the streets, Martin Luther King is assassinated, and the reform projects of the Prague Spring are crushed by invading Warsaw Pact troops—a politically symbolic year. That same year, Hans Werner Henze's oratorio was also scheduled to premiere in Hamburg, but the premiere was met with protests and a police intervention in the concert hall. The scandal made The Raft of the Medusa instantly famous. The libretto is based on the true, scandalous story of a shipwreck off the west coast of Africa: While those responsible sought safety in lifeboats, 154 crew members and passengers were abandoned to the ocean on a makeshift raft.

EPSG:4326

The Raft of the Medusa — Bavarian Radio Choir · WDR Choir · ORF RSO · Metzmacher

Felsenreitschule

Eine junge Frau, die von ihrem Bruder mit dessen Freund verheiratet wird, greift zum Messer, als der Bräutigam sich ihr in der Hochzeitsnacht nähern will. Im blutigen Nachthemd erscheint sie unter den Hochzeitsgästen – und rührt deren Herzen: Sie vermittelt dabei den alle ergreifenden Eindruck, die Stimme des größten Feindes ihres Bruders zu hören, den sie zu lieben scheint, und glaubt – offenbar dem Wahnsinn verfallen – nun Hochzeit mit ihm zu feiern.

Lucy of Lammermoor

Staatenhaus Köln

He is probably the most famous playboy of all time: Don Giovanni. According to his servant Leporello, he has seduced 1,003 women in Spain alone. But who is Don Giovanni really? “Chi son io tu non saprai”, seems to be his answer to Donna Anna at the start of the opera, after he has tried to win her over by force. “You’ll never know who I am.” Indeed, his character defies any precise definition; he always remains changeable and unpredictable. Because Don Giovanni is a character without any consciousness. He is the principle that raises human questions about good and evil, desire and duty, transgression and punishment.

Don Giovanni

There is probably no other work in the history of music that so joyfully praises the creation of something new, celebrates the surmounting of something old and past, and awakens curiosity for unimagined discoveries and experiences: with his groundbreaking oratorio “Die Schöpfung” (“The Creation”), Joseph Haydn created a song of praise for the creation of the world. Joseph Haydn started work on “Die Schöpfung” after resigning from his position as Hofkapellmeister (court music director) to Prince Esterházy. During his stays in London, he attended performances of George Frideric Handel’s oratorios, where hundreds of singers thrilled audiences of all social classes with their choral singing in the language of the country. Fascinated by their radiance, Haydn resolved to compose something similar in his homeland. As inspiration, Haydn chose John Milton’s “Paradise Lost” and Genesis from the Bible. By his own account, the composition was a profoundly religious experience for Haydn - deeply rooted in Catholicism as he was. The public premiere was staged with great success on 19 March 1799 in the old Burgtheater in Vienna. The work caused a sensation like few others before it and it became the greatest triumph of Haydn’s career. In a period when the Napoleonic Wars were raging in Europe, the “Schöpfung” also stood for the vision of the new humanism, as a musical allegory for the Age of Enlightenment. At the same time, hardly any other work demonstrates so clearly how the world view has changed over the past 200 years. Where does humanity stand today? Who decides on the categories of good and evil, on the role of men and women? Who writes the story and how does the story go on? The British director Melly Still, who is making her German debut at Oper Köln, casts a modern and critical eye on the creation myth and shifts the process of storytelling into the foreground in a way that is visually very powerful.

The Creation

Today marks a joyous day at the castle. Finally, the wedding of Figaro and Susanna is set to take place, both of whom are in the service of Count Almaviva and are being supported by him. Everything seems perfect - and is, of course, only half the truth. In fact, the Count is after Susanna and tries to play his employees off against each other wherever possible. At the same time, he believes he must keep an eye on his lonely wife, as well as his pubescent nephew Cherubino, who continuously puts him in compromising situations. The longer the crazy day lasts, the less the Count seems to be master in his own house. Only when everyone unites against him are the rules of the game changed. But until that moment arrives, until Figaro and Susanna are finally wed, until the Count and Countess are reconciled, until a genuine plea for forgiveness for wrongful actions is spoken, the most beautiful and profound human comedy in opera unfolds: Mozart’s LE NOZZE DI FIGARO. Here, reason, intrigue, and emotional desire are perfectly balanced when it comes to bringing order to the emotional chaos that has always connected people. For his first Mozart libretto, the librettist Lorenzo da Ponte took on a brand-new and quite delicate drama in 1786, Beaumarchais' French comedy "La folle journée ou Le mariage de Figaro," a critical reflection of the conditions in the Ancien Régime. Mozart embraced the revolutionary idea, after all, he had just settled in Vienna as a free artist, and had a clear vision of how he wanted to live as a citizen in a still feudal world. Far more important, however, are the love and respect that his music shows to every single character on stage, as Mozart ensures that each and every one - whether young or old, privileged or less privileged - receives their due. Mozart's masterful ensemble piece conducted by General Music Director Andrés Orozco-Estrada. Katharina Thoma, already known in Cologne for DIE FRAU OHNE SCHATTEN, directs this musical comedy that never goes out of style

Le Nozze di Figaro

Felix Mendelssohn's "A Midsummer Night's Dream" combines feather-light ghost dances and sparkling gaiety. The music, composed in 1843, is arguably the most beautiful musical setting of Shakespeare's comedy of the same name. In it, young people lose themselves in a fairy world and experience turbulent emotional turmoil. 150 years earlier, the British composer Henry Purcell composed his equally heartwarming stage work "The Fairy Queen" on the same subject. Marie Jacquot, the future WDR chief conductor, also leads the musical mythical creatures of Norwegian conductor Kristine Tjøgersen through the enchanted summer night forest.

Marie Jacquot - Midsummer Night's Dreams

Museum Ludwig

Guest performance in Essen

Philharmonic Essen

This is a gripping operatic thriller of emotions, with which the then 21-year-old Gioacchino Rossini catapulted himself to the forefront of Italian composers from Venice in 1813: Amenaide is to obey her father's will and marry a man she does not love. In doing so, she contributes to ending the power struggle between two rival families in her hometown. Amenaide, in the meantime suspected of being a traitor and threatened with death, loves Tancredi, who returns to his hometown incognito, learns of the forced betrothal and kills his rival. But the trusting relationship with Amenaide is gone, Tancredi is desperate and wants to find death. Although an early work, TANCREDI with its lively melodies and resounding finales testifies to Rossini's musical inventiveness. It is above all the solo scenes in which the work builds up to its highlights. With the catchy cabaletta of the eponymous hero "Di tanti palpiti", the work contains a veritable opera hit, which in Italy effectively has the status of a folk song. The male main character Tancredi is in this case cast with a mezzo-soprano, a "trouser role" characteristic of the early 19th century. Musically, however, TANCREDI has much more to offer than this one big hit. Rossini developed new ways for the romantic Italian opera with his so-called "Rossini Code" also in terms of form - often a tempo d’attacco, an adagio, a tempo di mezzo and a cabaletta follow one another. The successful production of the Bregenz Festival from the year 2024, directed by Jan Philipp Gloger, is now being presented in Cologne. Jan Philipp Gloger, most recently in Cologne for the direction of EIN MASKENBALL, focuses his production on the love between two women who have little chance of self-fulfilment in a clan and macho world. The musical direction is held by George Petrou.

Kathrin Zukowski

Events

Upcoming events

Sep 12, 2025 - Jun 28, 2026

Die Zauberflöte · Wiener Staatsoper

1 - 28 Mar, 2026

Le Nozze di Figaro · Oper Köln

29 - 30 May, 2026

Marie Jacquot - Midsummer Night's Dreams · WDR Sinfonieorchester

May 31, 2026

Guest performance in Essen · WDR Sinfonieorchester

Jun 20 - Jul 5, 2026

Tancredi · Oper Köln

Past events

Oct 26 - Nov 16, 2025

The Rhinegold · Oper Köln

1 - 10 Oct, 2025

Siegfried · Staatsoper Berlin

Future and recently performed repertoire

Pamina in Die Zauberflöte by Mozart

Wiener Staatsoper

Amenaide in Tancredi by Rossini

Oper Köln

Pamina in The Magic Flute by Mozart

Oper Köln

Susanna in The Marriage of Figaro by Mozart

Oper Köln

Woglinde in Das Rheingold by Wagner

Oper Köln

The Woodbird in Siegfried by Wagner

Staatsoper Berlin

La Mort in Das Floß der Medusa by Henze

Salzburger Festspiele

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