Royal Opera House 2023/24: Rusalka (2024)

Bell, Book and Candle

A modern-day witch likes her neighbor but despises his fiancée, so she enchants him to love her instead... only to fall in love with him for real.

Love Me If You Dare

Arjun falls in love with Divyavathi who turns out to be a ghost, and sets out on a journey to uncover the truth about Divyavathi's spectral existence, learning valuable lessons about love, acceptance, and empathy along the way.

Cinderella

Cinderella, an orphaned girl with an evil stepmother, has big dreams and with the help of her Fabulous Godmother, she perseveres to make them come true.

Daniel

Taken from his people, Daniel is exiled inside the perilous kingdom of Babylon. As he navigates this new life, will his trust in God remain steadfast through every test of faith?

Royal Opera House: Andrea Chénier

At a glittering party in 18th-century Paris, the poet Andréa Chenier delivers an impassioned denunciation of Louis XVI. Five years later, the Revolution has given way to the Terror, transforming the power balance between Chénier, his beloved Maddalena, and Gérard, the man who could destroy him...

The Slipper and the Rose

Prince Edward wants to marry for love, but the King and court of the kingdom of Euphrania are anxious for the prince to wed no matter what. When the prince meets Cinderella at a ball, he's sure she's the one, and when she loses her slipper upon exiting the dance, the prince is determined to find and marry her.

Romeo and Juliet, the worst forfeit of all time

After losing at YouTube Warriors, Cyprien and Squeezie (the two biggest French YouTubers) must publicly act the famous tragedy.

The Metropolitan Opera: Carmen

Director Carrie Cracknell makes her Met debut, reinvigorating the classic story with a staging that moves the action to the modern day, in a contemporary American industrial town.

Four Letters of Love

Nicholas and Isabel were made for each other but how will they ever know it? As ghosts, fate and the sheer power of true love pull them together, so too does life threaten to tear them apart.

The Metropolitan Opera: Il Barbiere di Siviglia

Mezzo-soprano Aigul Akhmetshina headlines a winning ensemble as the feisty heroine, Rosina, alongside high-flying tenor Jack Swanson, in his Met debut, as her secret beloved, Count Almaviva. Baritone Andrey Zhilikhovsky stars as Figaro, the titular barber of Seville, with bass-baritone Peter Kálmán as Dr. Bartolo and bass Alexander Vinogradov as Don Basilio rounding out the principal cast.

The Metropolitan Opera: Porgy and Bess

The Gershwins’ modern American masterpiece has its first Met performances in almost three decades, starring bass-baritone Eric Owens and soprano Angel Blue in the title roles. Director James Robinson’s stylish production transports audiences to Catfish Row, a setting vibrant with the music, dancing, emotion, and heartbreak of its inhabitants.

Titanic: The Musical

In the final hours of April 14, 1912, the RMS Titanic, on her maiden voyage from Southampton to New York, collided with an iceberg and ‘the unsinkable ship’ slowly sank. It was one of the most tragic disasters of the 20th Century. Fifteen hundred seventeen men, women, and children lost their lives.

Spirited Away: Live on Stage

A young girl, Chihiro, becomes trapped in a strange new world of spirits. When her parents undergo a mysterious transformation, she must call upon the courage she never knew she had to free her family. The film version of the stage production was shot during the play’s 2022 run at the Imperial Theatre in Tokyo.

Don Giovanni

Screen adapatation of Mozart's greatest opera. Don Giovanni, the infamous womanizer, makes one conquest after another until the ghost of Donna Anna's father, the Commendatore, (whom Giovanni killed) makes his appearance. He offers Giovanni one last chance to repent for his multitudinious improprieties. He will not change his ways So, he is sucked down into hell by evil spirits. High drama, hysterical comedy, magnificent music!

The Oath

400 A.D., in a forgotten time of Ancient America, a lone Hebraic fugitive must preserve the history of his fallen nation while being hunted by a ruthless tyrant – but rescuing the King's abused mistress could awaken a warrior's past.

Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street

In 1846, Anthony Hope sails into London with the mysterious Sweeney Todd, a once-naive barber whose life and marriage was uprooted by a corrupt justice system. Todd confides in Nellie Lovett, the owner of a local meat pie shop, and the two become partners, as Todd swears revenge on those that have wronged him and decides to take up his old profession.

National Theatre Live: Jack Absolute Flies Again

July 1940. After an aerial dog fight, Pilot Officer Jack Absolute flies home to win the heart of his old flame, Lydia Languish. Back on British soil, Jack’s advances soon turn to anarchy when the young heiress demands to be loved on her own, very particular, terms.

Newsies

A week in the life of the exploited, child newspaper sellers in turn-of-the-century New York. When their publisher, Joseph Pulitzer, tries to squeeze a little more profit out of their labours, they organize a strike, only to be confronted with the Pulitzer's hard-ball tactics.

The Nutcracker

Clara is given an enchanted Nutcracker doll on Christmas Eve. As midnight strikes, she creeps downstairs to find a magical adventure awaiting her and her Nutcracker. The magician Drosselmeyer transforms the drawing room into a battle between mice and toy soldiers. During the battle, Clara saves the Nutcracker’s life – so breaking a magical spell that turned him from a boy to a toy – and the Mouse King is defeated. In celebration, Drosselmeyer sweeps Clara and the Nutcracker off to the Kingdom of Sweets, where they meet the Sugar Plum Fairy and take part in a wonderful display of dances. The next morning, Clara’s adventures seem to have been more than just a dream.

The Tales of Hoffman - National Opera Company (INBAL)

Opera in three acts, a prologue and an epilogue, by Jacques Offenbach (1819-1880), with a libretto in French by Jules Barbier (1825-1901), based on a work that Barbier himself and Michel Carré (1821-1872) had written based on stories by E.T.A. Hoffmann (1776-1822). Approximate duration: 2 h 45 min Recommended for those over 15 years old. The young poet Hoffmann, accompanied by Nicklausse, his alter ego and confidant, is in a tavern next to the theatre where Mozart's Don Giovanni is being performed. During the opera's intermission, some diners arrive at the bar who, upon seeing the poet, encourage him to sing and tell them the story of his famous love affairs. Hoffmann finally gives in and shares with them the stories of Olympia, Antonia and Giulietta. They, absorbed in the poet's stories, remain in the tavern, forgetting about the opera performance.

Death Takes a Holiday

This is the story of the 1920s, shortly after mankind woke up from the nightmare of World War I, a time haunted by death like never before in history. Late at night, a car is speeding along a mountain road in northern Italy. In the car is the family of the Duke of Lamberti. They were returning from celebrating the engagement of their only daughter, Grazia, in Venice. However, tragedy strikes the car carrying the family. The car spins out of control and Grazia is thrown into the darkness of the night...

Underwater Love

35-year-old Asuka works in a lakeside fish factory. She’s about to be married to her boss, Taki, but one day, she encounters a kappa – a water sprite found in Japanese folklore – and learns that the creature is in fact the reborn form of Aoki, an old crush who’d drowned when they were 17.

Girl Haunts Boy

Cole, a teen grieving the loss of his dad, forms an unlikely bond with Bea, a ghost. As they navigate life and death, they must break an ancient curse.

Elaine Stritch at Liberty

Judy at the Palace. Sinatra at Carnegie Hall. Streisand at the Garden. Stritch on Broadway. Legendary performances come along so rarely. Elaine Stritch At Liberty is an autobiographical one-woman show written by Elaine Stritch and John Lahr. The show consists of spoken monologues from Stritch following her life and career, interspersed with showtunes and pop standards which compliment her stories. Many of these songs had been originated by Stritch in major Broadway productions, such as "The Ladies Who Lunch" from Company and "Civilization" from Angel In The Wings. Her experiences and relationship with show business are focal points, but she also explores more intimate, personal themes like her alcoholism and romantic relationships.

The King and I

Widowed Welsh mother Anna Loenowens becomes a governess and English tutor to the wives and many children of the stubborn King Mongkut of Siam. Anna and the King have a clash of personalities as she works to teach the royal family about the English language, customs and etiquette, and rushes to prepare a party for a group of European diplomats who must change their opinions about the King.

Funny Girl

The life of Fanny Brice, who rose from the Lower East Side of New York to become one of Broadway's biggest stars under producer Florenz Ziegfield. While she was cheered onstage as a great comedian, offstage she faced a doomed relationship with the man she loved.

Fenglou Chronicles: Tale of the Spirit Fox

Eighteen years after her grandfather's death, a young woman marries the fox spirit Feng Lou to seek revenge. Meanwhile, a power struggle within the fox clan escalates as Feng Lou’s grandfather allies with foreign forces to seize control, unleashing chaos and endangering innocent lives.

Green Snake: The Origin

The Green Snake, who feeds only on demons and never harms humans, is misunderstood by the people of Hangzhou. Driven out and attacked, she escapes wounded and encounters a little ghost. The two decide to travel together. Upon entering the demon realm, the Green Snake attempts to rescue captured demons but faces skepticism and rejection. The Demon King, recognizing her abilities, assigns her a critical mission. As she spends time with the little ghost, the Green Snake begins to experience human emotions, and a deep bond forms between them.

7 Deaths of Maria Callas

A meditation on the female body as a source of both power and pain that focuses on the tragic figure of renowned American-Greek opera singer Maria Callas (1923-77), whose stunning soprano voice captivated audiences around the world in the mid-20th century while her life was wracked by scandal and personal suffering.

Rocky Horror Show Live

Sweethearts Brad and Janet, stuck with a flat tire during a storm, discover the eerie mansion of Dr. Frank-N-Furter, a transvestite scientist. As their innocence is lost, Brad and Janet meet a houseful of wild characters, including a rocking biker and a creepy butler. Through elaborate dances and rock songs, Frank-N-Furter unveils his latest creation: a muscular man named 'Rocky'.

SIX: The Musical Live!

The pop-inspired musical brings the six wives of Henry VIII right into the 21st century with infectious, empowering performances, accompanied by the on-stage band, the Ladies in Waiting. The Original West End cast reunites at London’s Vaudeville Theatre in front of a sold-out audience to strut their stuff and re-write their Tudor traumas in an unmissable cinematic recording of the show packed full of style, sass, and sensational songs.

Verdi: Rigoletto

Rigoletto is a jester in the court of the Duke of Mantua. He has a hunch-back and he's rather unattractive, but he's good at his job of humiliating the courtiers for the amusement of the Duke. The courtiers, of course, are not amused. The Duke is a ladies man who feels his life would be meaningless if he couldn't chase every skirt he sees. In fact, we learn as the opera begins that he's recently been noticing a young lady every Sunday on her way to church, and he's vowed to have his way with her. What nobody realizes is that the girl is the jester's beloved daughter, Gilda, and that Gilda has seen the Duke every Sunday and is smitten with him. Suddenly Count Monterone appears at court, furious that the Duke has seduced his daughter. Rigoletto ridicules Monterone, the Duke laughs, and Monterone casts an awful curse on both of them. Later, the courtiers discover that Rigoletto is secretly living with Gilda...

The Cursed Alpha's Mute Bride

Cursed mute, Wren believes no one will ever love her—that is, until she meets Alpha Hunter Silver, who claims they're mates! But Hunter is cursed too... Can they find love together and break their curses?

The Metropolitan Opera: Salome

Met performances of Strauss’s white-hot one-act tragedy, which receives its first new production at the company in 20 years. Claus Guth, one of Europe’s leading opera directors, gives the biblical story—already filtered through the beautiful and strange imagination of Oscar Wilde’s play—a psychologically perceptive Victorian-era setting rich in symbolism and subtle shades of darkness and light.

New York City Opera: A Little Night Music

Inspired by Ingmar Bergman's Smiles of a Summer Night, a tangled web of affairs is weaved around actress Desirée Armfeldt and the men who love her: lawyer Fredrik Egerman and Count Carl-Magnus Malcom. When Desirée's show travels through Fredrik's town, the estranged lovers' passion rekindles.

Bonnie & Clyde: The Musical

Filmed at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane during its two scheduled performances on January 17-18, 2022, tells the story of Bonnie and Clyde. At the height of the Great Depression, Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow went from two small-town nobodies in West Texas to America's most renowned folk heroes and the Texas law enforcement's worst nightmares. Fearless, shameless, and alluring, Bonnie & Clyde is the electrifying story of love, adventure and crime that captured the attention of an entire country.

Cabaret

Filmed live from the 1993 revival, Sam Mendes' directorial debut takes place at the Donmar Warehouse in London's West End. Jane Horrocks stars as cabaret girl Sally Bowles, Adam Godley as the bicurious Cliff, and Alan Cumming as the eccentric Emcee. Inside the Kit Kat Club of 1931 Berlin, starry-eyed singer Sally and the impish Emcee sound the clarion call to decadent fun, while outside, a notorious political party grows into a brutal force.

Snow White

Following the benevolent King's disappearance, the Evil Queen dominated the once fair land with a cruel streak. Princess Snow White flees the castle when the Queen, in her jealousy over Snow White's inner beauty, tries to kill her. Deep into the dark woods, she stumbles upon seven magical dwarves and a young bandit named Jonathan. Together, they strive to survive the Queen's relentless pursuit and aspire to take back the kingdom in the process.

Hunter's Bride

Inspired by Carl Maria von Weber's Der Freischütz, the film opera Hunter's Bride traces the romantic rivalry between two veterans of the Napoleonic Wars who each vie for the heart of the same woman.

Romancing SaGa THE STAGE ~The Day Roanu Burned~

Every 300 years the Death Eclipse kills all newly born creatures. Men, women, and children, animals and plants, even ferocious monsters - no one can survive the devastation caused by the Eclipse. No one except a child chosen by the destiny. 600 years ago, such a child survived the Death Eclipse, only to become a demon king. During the next Eclipse, a chosen child became a holy king, and he defeated the evil demon king. Now, when the next Eclipse is nearing, nobody knows who the next fortunate survivor will become - a demon or a holy man?

La Cenerentola

The Prince, Don Ramiro (who has changed places with his valet, Dandini), meets Cenerentola and they are instantly attracted to each other. When the Philosopher, Alidoro, later takes Cenerentola (dressed in magnificent clothing) to the palace, Dandini (still posing as the prince) tries to talk of love to her, but Cenerentola rejects him, saying that she is in love with his 'valet'. Ramiro, who has overheard this comment, is overjoyed, and immediately proposes to her, but Cenerentola says that he must first seek her out and then, if he still felt the same way, she would marry him. She gives him one of a matching pairs of bracelets, telling him to look for its companion on her right arm (she then leaves the palace). Ramiro ends the masquerade, and he and Dandini resume their true identities. The Prince then sets out on his quest - little realising that destiny, in the form of a violent thunderstorm, is about to take a hand in the affair.