Two couples in different configurations, motivated by a bet about alleged or actual infidelity, are at the centre of Mozart’s Così fan tutte ("All Women Do It") with the cryptic subtitle "La scuola degli amanti" ("The School for Lovers"). The spirited words by librettist Lorenzo Da Ponte were enlivened with equally thoughtful music by Mozart, who by then was a veteran opera composer.

Così fan tutte

Bebelplatz

The Norn’s rope of destiny breaks, the world falls apart and the gods idly watch their own demise. People fight to claim power. Brünnhilde and Siegfried are drawn into these power struggles, essentially initiated by Hagen, the son of the ring’s first owner, Alberich. Siegfried dies: however, his death is the harbinger of a catastrophe from which hope for something new can arise.

Götterdäm­merung

Wotan wants to secure power through his descendants. The twins Siegmund and Sieglinde seem to be the perfect choice. One day, fate brings them together. However, for Wotan’s wife Fricka, the sibling’s love is a thorn in her side, and even Wotan himself feels emotionally torn. When his favourite daughter, the Valkyrie Brünnhilde, revolts against him, he puts her to sleep, casting a circle of fire around her that only a fearless person can walk through.

Die Walküre

The Nibelung dwarf Alberich robs the Rhinemaidens of the Rhinegold to forge a ring that confers "endless power". Meanwhile, Wotan, the father of the gods, is forced into action. To reward the giants Fasolt and Fafner for building the castle Valhalla, he steals the Nibelungs’ treasure with the help of Loge, the cunning fire god. Alberich curses the ring and all its future owners – the tragedy takes its course.

Das Rheingold

Did Richard Wagner already know when, in The Flying Dutchman, he first explored the notion of redemption, that this would end up being the central concern of his art? In his final opera, Parsifal, which was first performed in Bayreuth in 1882, it is not just a single person but society as a whole that awaits a saviour – buoyed by the hope of one day meeting the One who will fulfil this role. Parsifal’s qualification for this tremendous task is that he has become “knowing through compassion” – a process that takes many years, perhaps an entire lifetime. But there are forces trying to hinder him on his path. Will Parsifal be willing to place himself at the service of the community? Parsifal, which has been called a “stage consecration festival”, is still an overwhelming experience today. Can art truly help us find redemption?

Ekaterina Chayka-Rubinstein

Events

Upcoming events

Mar 22 - Apr 6, 2026

Parsifal · Semperoper Dresden

Past events

Oct 11 - Nov 8, 2025

Così fan tutte · Staatsoper Berlin

3 - 12 Oct, 2025

Götterdämmerung · Staatsoper Berlin

Future and recently performed repertoire

Dorabella in Così fan tutte by Mozart

Staatsoper Berlin

Floßhilde in Götterdämmerung by Wagner

Staatsoper Berlin

Siegrune in Die Walküre by Wagner

Staatsoper Berlin

2nd Knappe in Parsifal by Wagner

Semperoper Dresden

Floßhilde in Das Rheingold by Wagner

Staatsoper Berlin

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