Pelléas et Mélisande

In the organizer's words:

Premiere

Composer Claude Debussy. Text version by the composer after the play by Maurice Maeterlinck (1893).

Drame lyrique in five acts (1902)

recommended for ages 14 and up

Co-production with The Dallas Opera

In French language. With surtitles in German and English. New production.

Duration approx. 3 hours 15 minutes

Introductions for Pelléas et Mélisande will take place on July 11, 14, 17 and 22 one hour before the start of each performance in the Gartensaal of the Prinzregententheater.

Production:

The opera Pelléas et Mélisande, first performed in Paris in 1902, is based on the drama of the same name by Flemish symbolist Maurice Maeterlinck, a fairytale-like love triangle with a tragic ending about the half-brothers Golaud and Pelléas and the mysterious Mélisande, whom they both love. According to Maeterlinck, the external plot was not the core of the drama for him, he was rather trying to "descend deeper into human consciousness." The image for this is Allemonde Castle, a gloomy, oppressive place without light. The actual plot remains vague, but Claude Debussy also plumbs psychological depths in his opera and addresses subliminal mental processes. His music remains restrained and repeatedly approaches silence. The composition shimmers in a variety of colors that subtly illuminate the characters. Pelléas et Mélisande is a tragedy of inwardness, enigmatic, morbid, deeply sad and full of beauty. The production is directed by Dutch director Jetske Mijnssen, who is making her debut at the Bayerische Staatsoper with this production.

Price information:

€ 161 /125 /89 /- /- Munich Opera Festival