A quirky comedy of oversized egos in a dysfunctional first family brought the 24-year-old Handel his breakthrough in the Italian opera scene, and thus in the world. Sparkling melodies and hair-raising turf wars made him "everybody's darling" in the "Las Vegas" of the 18th century – Venice was then Europe's number one entertainment capital. His nickname "Il caro Sassone – Our dear Saxon" came about with "Agrippina." “In every second without music, clapping and shouts of ‘Viva il caro Sassone – Long live the dear Saxon!’ and other expressions of applause, too exaggerated to quote here, shook the theater,” reported John Mainwaring. “Everyone was astonished by the grandeur and sublimity of his style, for until then no one here had heard anything remotely resembling such powerful harmonies and such dense modulations, combined in such a magical way.”

Agrippina

Halle Opera House

A man who loves a woman; a woman who would rather be alone; a god who shoots arrows; and then: love. At first glance, the plot of the piece, which was composed by the youngest Bach son Johann Christian and which was shown in the Schwetzingen Palace Theater in 1774 after its London premiere, is quite simple. At second glance, it is not - at least that is the opinion of Pauline Jacob and Lisa Florentine Schmalz from the music theater and radio play collective staatsoper24, who are staging the almost forgotten piece as an audio theater together with Sebastian Bauer. Inspired by sculptures in the Schwetzingen Palace Gardens, they playfully look behind the facade of the play about Alcidoro, Dalisa and Amor, asking about the role models of Amor vincitore and about the freedom of desire. The early classical sounds of a piece that falls between two genres (cantata and one-act opera) are contrasted with contemporary sound moments by Patrick Schäfer. Singing is complemented by spoken words. Costumes reflect the imagery of the sculptures in the palace gardens. Julia Lezhneva and Maayan Licht provide seductive sounds in two virtuoso soprano parts together with the ensemble Il Gusto Barocco under Jörg Halubek. A project choir with students from the Mannheim University of Music is also involved. Alongside Johann Christian Bach's colorfully orchestrated music, you can hear breath and wind. It may be that by the end he will have swept some gods off their pedestals. Will the god of love really leave the Rococo theater as a victor?

Maayan light

Events

Upcoming events

Feb 20 - Jun 13, 2026

Agrippina · Staatskapelle Halle

Past events

Feb 20 - Jun 13, 2026

Agrippina · Staatskapelle Halle

May 25, 2025

Amor vincitore · SWR Symphonieorchester

Future and recently performed repertoire

Nerone in Agrippina by Handel

Staatskapelle Halle

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