After Salome’s world premiere in 1905, Richard Strauss became an opera composer whose name was on everyone’s lips. Sensational in its time, Salome was received with both wonder and shock, thanks to its theme combining religion and eroticism and its groundbreaking musical language. The one act opera is one of the most powerful and intensive representations of the genre of all time.
Suggested age guidance 16+. Please note that the production contains some scenes with nudity
We recommend everyone who visits the Opera House to wear a face mask. We kindly ask you to arrive at the performance in good time and only when you are not feeling ill. Our personnel are happy to help you whenever necessary.
Contrary to what has been mentioned previously, the role of Salome on 26 and 30 March will be sung by Elena Stikhina. Vida Miknevičiūtė will sing the role on 1 and 7 April, and Manuela Uhl on 20 and 23 April.
Herod is keeping the prophet Jochanaan imprisoned. When Herodias’s daughter Salome hears Jochanaan preach about the Son of Man, her curiosity is piqued and she is overcome by a strange emotion. Not long after, she wants Jochanaan brought to her.
Exploiting Narraboth’s infatuation, Salome gets to meet Jochanaan. She is immediately charmed and her curiosity soon turns into lust. Salome eventually wants to kiss Jochanaan, but the prophet rejects her advances.
Herod pleads Salome to dance. In return he promises her anything she wants. Salome agrees to perform the Dance of the Seven Veils and, once finished, reveals the reward of her choice: Jochanaan’s head on a silver platter. Herod is horrified by her request, but in the end Salome gets what she was promised.
You can read the full synopsis and other background information in the programme leaflet.
When director Christof Loy debuted at the Finnish National Opera with Tosca in 2018, his production was acclaimed by critics and the audience alike. Now the award-winning director has made an equally ravishing interpretation of Salome.
”Richard Strauss’s life and work reflect a special understanding and affinity for complex female characters. The opera is typical of its time in the way it explores sexual traumatas. Now, more than a hundred years later, it’s time to seek new angles to the story.
My aim was to set Salome free from the Lolita-like clichee of the girlish femme fatale of the fin de siècle, and to rather see in her a ‘dove that has strayed’, as Narraboth describes her. She takes us on a journey that questions gender and sexuality, initially dressed as a young man, maybe to protect herself, maybe in jest. Oscar Wilde meets Virginia Woolf.”
Watch the recording of Salome on Stage24. The recording is produced by the Finnish broadcasting company Yle in cooperation with the Finnish National Opera and Ballet.
Choose your favourite refreshments from this season’s tasty menu. You can easily add refreshments to your shopping basket while selecting tickets in our online store.
Please note that this performance has no intermission. The services of the Opera Restaurant are available before performance.
Please note that we cannot guarantee a specific table for orders made via the online store. We may also seat several parties at the same table. You may be assigned a bar height table for enjoying refreshments standing up.
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