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Der Rosenkavalier

Opera · 1911

In Vienna, the Marschallin’s young lover Octavian is asked to serve as the Knight of the Rose for her cousin Baron Ochs, who is engaged to Sophie von Faninal. When Octavian presents Sophie with a silver rose, they fall in love. Sophie refuses to marry Ochs, and Octavian helps her devise a scheme to break the engagement. Ochs is caught in a compromising situation and leaves in disgrace. The Marschallin recognizes that Octavian loves Sophie and lets him go; the young couple reunites.

Der Schmied von Gent

Opera · 1932

In wartime Ghent, blacksmith Smee loses his trade after being denounced for opposing Spanish rule. On the verge of drowning himself, he accepts seven years of wealth in return for his soul. As the pact nears its end, he repairs a donkey’s shoe for a poor family who prove to be Joseph, Mary, and Jesus. Joseph grants him three wishes, which Smee uses to outwit Hell’s emissaries. After Lucifer appears, the forge vanishes. At death Smee is rejected by both Hell and Heaven, so he opens a food stall for the dead. His wife intercedes with Joseph, who weighs Smee’s good and bad deeds and admits him to Paradise.

Der Tyroler Wastel

Opera · 1796

In 18th-century Vienna, Frau von Tiefsinn mistakes gifts sent by baker Joseph to her stepdaughter Louise as a romantic gesture from her own lover, Tulippan, but the confusion is resolved and Louise’s father approves her match with Joseph. His brother Wastel, a farmer from Tyrol, arrives with his wife Liesel and disrupts the household with his rough manners. At a Prater pub, Wastel’s songs provoke the party before a storm sends everyone home. The next morning, Wastel thwarts efforts to remove him. Frau von Tiefsinn tries to arrange Louise’s marriage to an imperial accountant, but Wastel helps Louise marry Joseph. Liesel rejects the accountant’s proposal, and Frau von Tiefsinn reconciles with her husband. Wastel gives the couple money for Louise’s dowry, and the household celebrates.

Der Wald

Opera · 1902

Forest spirits begin a ritual celebrating their timelessness, then fade as a village celebration starts. Röschen is engaged to woodcutter Heinrich. Iolanthe, the feared mistress of Count Rudolf, is attracted to Heinrich and tries to bring him into the castle. He rejects her, remaining loyal to Röschen. A peddler accuses Heinrich of killing a deer, giving Iolanthe leverage. Heinrich chooses deathless, powerful life over weak, brief life, and Iolanthe orders him killed. The forest spirits resume their interrupted ritual.

Der singende Teufel

Opera · 1928

Young organ-builder Amandus refuses to complete the great organ that drove his father mad. Lilian, who loves him, asks him to lead pagans in their spring rites, but he commits to Christianity. The pagan knight Sinbrand abducts Lilian after Amandus refuses a duel; Father Kaleidos rescues Amandus. Amandus becomes a monk and completes the organ, hoping its music will pacify the pagans. When they lay down their weapons, Kaleidos orders them slaughtered. Weeks later, Lilian tends the broken Amandus. She burns the monastery to break his despair; the organ produces heavenly sounds, Amandus is transformed, and Lilian dies.

Destiny

Opera · 1934

Composer Živný and Míla were once lovers, but Míla’s mother separated them. They meet again at a spa and rekindle their relationship. Four years later, they are married and reading Živný’s unfinished opera, which portrays Míla as unfaithful. Her mother, whose mental state has deteriorated, rushes toward a balcony; Míla tries to restrain her, and both fall to their deaths. Eleven years later, Živný rehearses the still unfinished opera with his students, relives his love for Míla, and collapses before the ending is written.

Die Feen

Opera · 1888

Ada, a half-fairy, gives up immortality to live with Arindal, but the fairy king sets a condition: she must keep her identity secret for eight years, then torment Arindal on the final day. When she appears to destroy their children and betray his kingdom, Arindal curses her. The curse turns Ada to stone and drives Arindal toward madness. He journeys through guarded portals with a sword, shield, and lyre, ultimately freeing Ada by playing the lyre. The fairy king grants Arindal immortality, and he and Ada rule the fairyland while Arindal’s mortal kingdom passes to Lora and Morald.

Die Fledermaus

Opera · 1874

Viennese man-about-town Gabriel von Eisenstein postpones serving an eight-day prison sentence to attend a ball hosted by Prince Orlofsky. His wife Rosalinde, maid Adele and prison governor Frank also attend in disguise. Rosalinde poses as a Hungarian countess and takes Eisenstein’s watch as evidence of his attempted infidelity. The next morning, the guests gather at the prison, where Eisenstein learns that Falke orchestrated the evening as revenge for an earlier practical joke; the champagne is blamed and the couple reconciles.

Die Göttin der Vernunft

Opera · 1897

In 1794 Châlons, caricaturist Jacquelin and folk singer Ernestine seek passports to escape. A countess also wants to flee, so she pretends to be Ernestine while the real Ernestine returns with authority from the National Convention and appoints Bonhomme as a delegate. Amid mistaken identities and rivalries, Bonhomme protects the countess and Jacquelin, and Ernestine distracts the others by performing as the Goddess of Reason. Ernestine gives her and Jacquelin’s passports to the countess and Captain Robert; the three couples marry.

Die Harmonie der Welt

Opera · 1957

Johannes Kepler serves Emperor Rudolf II, supports himself by casting horoscopes, and pursues a theory of universal harmony. He marries Susanne, faces religious conflict, and fights for six years to save his mother Katharina from a witchcraft accusation. Wallenstein later hires Kepler as his astrologer. As political turmoil grows under Ferdinand II and Swedish forces invade, the ailing Kepler warns the emperor’s electors in vain and dies. The characters’ roles as celestial bodies are reflected in the opera’s final vision of their ordered orbits.

Die Liebe der Danae

Opera · 1952

Danae’s father Pollux seeks a wealthy husband for her, and Midas arrives to woo her. Midas is actually disguised as his own servant; Jupiter, pursuing Danae, impersonates Midas. At the wedding Jupiter forces Midas to take his place, but Danae turns to gold when she embraces him. She is restored to life and chooses the mortal Midas. Though Jupiter curses them with poverty and later tries once more to win Danae, he finally accepts her choice.

Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg

Opera · 1868

In sixteenth-century Nuremberg, young knight Walther von Stolzing falls in love with Eva Pogner, whose father has promised her to the winner of the mastersingers’ song contest. Walther fails to qualify, but Hans Sachs recognizes his talent and helps him shape a new song. Beckmesser mistakenly takes the song for Sachs’s, then fails in the contest; Walther sings it successfully and wins Eva. Sachs blesses the couple and celebrates the mastersingers’ art.

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