Salome

Musical drama in one actionLibretto: Richard Strauss based on Oscar Wilde's Salome tragedy translated into German by Hedwig LachmannpraPremiere: 9/12/1905, Semperoper, DresdenPremiere: 22/11/2026Co-production: Teatro Real, MadridOriginal German language version with Polish and English subtitles

The Dresden premiere of Richard Strauss's Salome in 1905 came as a shock to audiences. The composer decided to use as the basis of the libretto the work of Oscar Wildeʼs banned in some countries. As a starting point, the writer chose a brief mention that appears in the Bible about Herod's stepdaughter. In Wilde's story, she not only gets a name, but also becomes a full-blown character. Salome is the daughter of Herodias, whose charm cannot be resisted by the whole court, including her stepfather. However, there is one person on whom the princess's spell does not work - it is the prophet Jochanaan kept in confinement as a prisoner of Herod. Salome doesn't give for a win. When she fails to win Jochanan's favor, she decides to do her own thing in a different way. Thanks to the dance of the seven veils, she manages to convince Herod to fulfill her wish - this is the head of the prophet given on a tray. Salome, kissing Jochanan's dead lips, triumphs, but she will have to pay the ultimate price for it.

The audience was shocked not only by the criminal instincts of the main character and the blood-dripping head of Jochanaan appearing on stage, but also by the musical side of the opera. Strauss composed a condensed, one-act, but monumental work written for a large orchestra, full of dissonant sounds, with an extremely sensual title part. It can be said that the scandal Strauss had hoped for has paid off — the opera has become a hit all over Europe, and is now one of the most popular works from the twentieth-century repertoire. The work fascinates successive generations of artists, who ask questions about the causes of tragedy, as mysterious as it is inevitable.

The performance was prepared by Claus Guth, one of the most important opera directors working on the world's biggest stages. The current production, which is a co-production with Teatro Real, does not focus on the biblical dimension of the story. The creator points out that the obsession with the character of Salome developed only at the turn of the 19th and early 20th centuries, therefore, it can be said that the ancient costume here is only a veiled criticism of the hypocrisy of Victorian society. In the interpretation of Guth, Salome is full of ambiguous symbols a deep psychological story about trying to find your own voice. Who in this story is the perpetrator and who is the victim?

The opera will be conducted by Yoel Gamzou, it will be his first premiere as musical director of the Teatr Wielki — the National Opera.

Orchestra of the Grand Theatre - National Opera