Oper Graz

Idomeneo

Dramma per musica in three acts, KV 366 (1781) Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart I Libretto by Giambattista Varesco In Italian with German surtitles.
  • 09/27/2025, from 19.00 to 22.30
  • 10/02/2025, from 19.00 to 22.30
  • 10/08/2025, from 19.00 to 22.30
  • 10/10/2025, from 17.30 to 21.00
  • 10/17/2025, from 19.00 to 22.30
  • 10/19/2025, from 15.00 to 18.30
  • 10/22/2025, from 19.00 to 22.30
  • 11/01/2025, from 18.00 to 21.30
  • 11/23/2025, from 15.00 to 18.30
  • 11/30/2025, from 18.00 to 21.30
  • Opera/Operetta, Classic
  • Tickets
Two people pose in front of a wooden door, above them a cardboard cloud with a lightning symbol. | © Oper Graz - Ingo Pertramer

Details

The end of the war, the return home and a fateful oath including human sacrifice. In his opera, premiered in 1781, the 24-year-old Mozart explores the troubled soul of the war-wounded Cretan king Idomeneo in a tragic conflict of responsibility between raison d'état and private interests with dramatic intensity and new, exciting orchestral colours. In his production, director Philipp Westerbarkei examines the relationship between war and humanity.

After more than ten years in the Trojan War, the Cretan king Idomeneo returns to his homeland. But even before he reaches his native shores
he is caught in a heavy storm. In mortal fear, he begs Neptune to spare him and swears to sacrifice the first person he meets on land.
he encounters on land. The curse of fate: it is his own son Idamante!
Instead of finally being able to look forward to a time of peace, the king is faced with a fateful decision.

In 1780, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was commissioned to compose an opera for the Munich carnival season. In his work on the dramma per musica, he distinguished himself as a brilliant musical dramatist with an expressive orchestration that followed the psyche of the title character.

With Idomeneo, his personal favourite opera, the composer created a masterpiece whose subject matter is rooted in antiquity, but which is told from the enlightened, humanistic perspective of the late 18th century and still speaks to us today with great urgency due to the timelessness of its conflict.

Public transport: Tram 1, 7 I Stop: Kaiser-Josef Platz/Opera

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Location

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Opera House
Address
Kaiser-Josef-Platz 10, 8010 Graz
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Organizer

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Opernhaus Graz GmbH
Address
Kaiser-Josef-Platz 10, 8010 Graz
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