Peter Grimes

In the organizer's words:

A rough coastal region and the seclusion of a fishing village - this is the setting for the exciting and tragic opera about the fisherman and loner Peter Grimes. Grimes, who lives on the fringes of society, stands against a village community full of double standards. Only Ellen Orford stands by him and tries to help him when violent incidents repeatedly occur that are associated with him. But no one can tame the unleashed forces of nature to which everything is subject. The sea, this all-dominating element, not only conveys itself in the colorful, impressionistic symphonic interludes, but is also the life-determining factor within the plot.

The premiere of Benjamin Britten's first great opera on June 7, 1945, in World War II-ravaged London, marked a new era in musical theater and became a national event: not since the works of Henry Purcell, more than 250 years earlier, had there been such a significant opera by an English composer. The libretto refers to an episode of the epic poem "The Borough" ("Der Weiler") by George Crabbe, a native of Britten's home in Aldeburgh. The successful Cologne production by the artistic team Frederic Wake-Walker (staging) and Anna Jones (stage and costumes) now returns to the StaatenHaus.