aftercurtain.
Loading navigation…

Operas

Upcoming shows

3280 shows

Clear filters

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.

Die Walküre

Opera · 1870

Siegmund seeks shelter in Hunding’s house and discovers that Hunding’s wife Sieglinde is his twin sister. They fall in love, and Siegmund draws the sword Nothung from an ash tree. Wotan orders Brünnhilde to protect Siegmund, but Fricka demands punishment for the twins’ union; Wotan reverses his command, and Siegmund dies in battle. Brünnhilde helps the pregnant Sieglinde escape with the sword fragments. Wotan punishes Brünnhilde by placing her in a fire-ringed sleep, where only a fearless hero can reach her.

Die heilige Ente: ein Spiel mit Göttern und Menschen

Opera · 1923

Bored Chinese gods amuse themselves by exchanging the identities of duck-breeder Yang and a mandarin. The mandarin sentences Yang to death after a duck is stolen; in the exchanged bodies, Yang commutes the sentence and mocks the gods. The gods reverse the exchange. When the duck returns, the mandarin considers it a miracle and offers Yang nobility, but Yang chooses to seek his fortune elsewhere.

Die lustigen Weiber von Windsor

Opera · 1849

Frau Fluth and Frau Reich each receive a love letter from Falstaff and conspire to punish him. Their husbands suspect infidelity, but the women repeatedly trick Falstaff, first hiding him in a laundry basket and later disguising him as a maid. Meanwhile, Anna Reich resists her parents’ preferred suitors and loves Fenton. In Windsor Forest, the couples frighten and mock Falstaff at a masked ball, while Anna and Fenton marry; the families reconcile.

Die tote Stadt

Opera · 1920

In Bruges at the end of the nineteenth century, Paul remains consumed by the memory of his dead wife Marie. He meets Marietta, a dancer who resembles her, and tries to recreate his wife through her. Most of the opera’s latter two acts unfold in a dream vision: Paul becomes jealous, strangles Marietta with Marie’s hair, and wakes to learn that Marietta had only briefly left her umbrella behind. He decides to leave Bruges and accept Marie’s death.

Dimitri

Opera · 1876

Vasili returns to the Polish monastery where he was raised and reunites with Marina, who has disguised herself as a gypsy after fleeing an arranged marriage. The Count of Lusatia reveals that Vasili is Dimitri, son of Ivan IV. Lusatia and Vanda scheme to separate Dimitri from Marina and marry him to Vanda. Marina seeks Marpha, widow of Ivan IV, and tells her Dimitri is alive, but Marpha cannot confirm his identity. At Dimitri’s camp near Moscow, news arrives that Boris Godunov has been killed. Lusatia admits he murdered the real Dimitri; Dimitri kills him, and Marpha recognizes the young man as her son. Dimitri is acclaimed as leader, while Vanda swears revenge. At his coronation with Marina, Patriarch Job demands Marpha swear Dimitri is her son. As she hesitates, Lusatia shoots Dimitri, who dies with Marina and Marpha asking God to reveal the truth.

Divadlo za branou

Opera · 1936

In the opening ballet-pantomime, Pierrot exposes Harlequin’s flirtation with Colombina, but the innkeeper eventually blesses their relationship. In the next acts, the mayor plots to abduct Colombina with help from the night-watchman, while Pierrot remains jealous and flirts with her. Pierrot and the others overhear the plot and stage a false doctor scene to thwart the men. The mayor and night-watchman are frightened by the four lovers disguised as ghosts. The innkeeper finally accepts marriages between Harlequin and Colombina, and Pierrot and Katuška.

Doctor Ox's Experiment

Opera · 1998

In the sedate Flemish town of Quiquendone, scientist Doctor Ox introduces a gas that speeds up the inhabitants’ lives and thoughts. The town’s cautious leaders approve his project, and the experiment turns a performance of Les Huguenots into chaos, stirring duels and rivalries. In the second act, political agitation becomes a plan to attack a neighboring town; after Ygène protests and an explosion wrecks the town, the residents return to their normal selves and Frantz and Suzel reunite.

Doktor und Apotheker

Opera · 1786

Pharmacist Stößel plans to marry his daughter Leonore to the drunken Captain Sturmwald, but she loves Gotthold, son of Stößel’s professional rival, Doctor Krautmann. Gotthold and surgeon Sichel sneak into the house and arrange to marry Leonore and Rosalie. Disguised as the captain and a notary, they trick Stößel into signing a marriage contract. When the real captain and the doctor arrive, Stößel and Krautmann accuse each other of deception and poisoning. Claudia brokers a reconciliation; the lovers marry, and Sichel becomes an apprentice in Stößel’s laboratory.

Dolores Claiborne

Opera · 2013

Interrogated about the death of her employer, wealthy widow Vera Donovan, Dolores recounts her life. Flashbacks reveal that her abusive husband Joe also molested their daughter Selena. During a solar eclipse, Vera urges Dolores to solve her problem. Dolores provokes Joe, who chases her into the woods and falls into a well she has concealed; she covers it, leaving him to die. In the present, adult Selena tells police that Dolores could not have killed Vera, who had become close to her. Vera left her estate to Dolores. Selena later learns Vera died by suicide, falling down stairs when Dolores was not looking. Selena leaves, still not having forgiven her mother for killing Joe.

Don Bucefalo

Opera · 1847

Music master Don Bucefalo offers singing lessons to villagers. Rosa, believing her husband Carlino died in war, hopes to study singing and marry Count Belprato; her neighbour Don Marco also loves her. Carlino returns disguised as a soldier to find out whether Rosa still loves him. While Don Bucefalo prepares a village opera, Carlino insults Rosa and sets off accusations. Don Marco eventually funds the production and sings its principal bass role. During rehearsals, Carlino reveals himself and reunites with Rosa; all ends happily.

Don César de Bazan

Opera · 1872

King Charles II desires Maritana, a street singer, but cannot approach her because of her low birth. Don César de Bazan is sentenced to death for duelling to protect Lazarille. Don José arranges for Maritana to marry Don César before his execution, hoping to use her as a means to gain the queen’s love. After the execution, Lazarille reveals that he removed the bullets, and Don César is alive. He prevents the king from forcing himself on Maritana, kills Don José to protect the queen’s honour, and is appointed governor of Granada.

Don Rodrigo

Opera · 1964

After avenging an attack on his father, Rodrigo is crowned King of Spain. Don Julian entrusts his daughter Florinda to the court, and Rodrigo promises to protect her. At his coronation Rodrigo opens a forbidden chest and discovers an Arab flag and a curse that he will be the last of his dynasty. He later rapes Florinda, who writes to her father demanding revenge. Don Julian rebels, defeats Rodrigo at Guadalete, and the Moors enter Spain. Rodrigo becomes a vagrant and, after sheltering with a blind hermit, meets Florinda again, confesses his wrongdoing, and dies in her embrace.

Dorilla in Tempe

Opera · 1726

In Tempe, shepherdess Dorilla loves Elmiro, while Nomio, actually Apollo in disguise, loves her. King Admeto learns that the dragon Python can be stopped only by sacrificing Dorilla. Nomio kills the monster and saves her. Admeto orders Dorilla to marry Nomio, but she and Elmiro confess their love and flee. Elmiro is condemned and Dorilla throws herself into a river; Apollo saves her, reveals his identity, and orders Dorilla and Elmiro, and Eudamia and Filindo, to marry.

Dr. Sun Yat-sen

Opera · 2011

Across 1911–1918, revolutionary Sun Yat-sen and Ching-ling Soong fall in love and marry despite her father Charlie’s opposition; Sun’s first wife Lu gives him a divorce paper. After the Qing dynasty falls, Sun becomes provisional president, but Yuan Shikai betrays him and the couple flee assassins, during which Ching-ling miscarries. Charlie later reconciles with his daughter, returns her childhood wedding dress, and renews his faith in Sun’s revolutionary ideals.

Dream of the Red Chamber

Opera · 2016

A monk tells of a stone and a crimson pearl flower who descend to earth as Bao Yu and Dai Yu. Raised in the Jia household, they recognize their connection and fall in love. But family debts and the Emperor's political demands press Bao Yu toward marriage with Bao Chai. The household tricks him into that marriage, and imperial soldiers seize the fortunes of the Jia and Xue families. Dai Yu disappears into the lake, while Bao Yu becomes a monk and later narrates his life.

Dèbora e Jaéle

Opera · 1922

The Israelite prophetess Deborah urges war against Canaanite King Sisera and sends Jael to lure him from his fortress. Jael attempts to kill Sisera but falls in love with him, and he pardons her. Mara’s account of her son’s death at Canaanite hands stirs Jael’s conscience. After the Israelites defeat the Canaanites, Sisera seeks refuge in Jael’s tent. Though Jael first refuses to hand him over, she kills him in his sleep as an Israelite mob approaches, sparing him a worse death.

Déjanire

Opera · 1911

After Hercules kills King Eurytus and sacks Oechalia, he intends to marry the king’s daughter Iole. Iole loves Philoctetes, and agrees to marry Hercules to save her lover’s life. Phénice urges Hercules’s wife Déjanire to leave him, but she instead tries to win him back. When that fails, she gives Iole a tunic soaked in the blood of Nessus, believing it will restore an unfaithful lover. Iole gives it to Hercules on their wedding day; the poisoned tunic causes unbearable pain, and Hercules dies in the flames of the pyre before ascending to Olympus.

Showing 697–816 of 3,280 shows

Load more shows