Lohengrin

Accused of killing her brother, the heir to the Duchy of Brabant, Elsa asks to be defended by the man she has seen in her dreams. When he appears, led by a swan, he accepts on condition that she never asks him his name. Richard Wagner was 37 years old when he wrote his romantic opera Lohengrin with its compelling score. Writing not only the music but also the libretto (inspired by Germanic legends), he laid the foundations for his “music drama”, to which a prelude, leitmotivs and an extensive orchestra and choruses also contributed. Director Kirill Serebrennikov, known for his striking creations, makes his Paris Opera debut with this work, upon which his reflection on war as a machine for crushing bodies and souls sheds a sombre light.