Idomeneo

The end of the war, the return home and a fateful oath including human sacrifice. In his opera, which 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 severe storm. In mortal fear, he begs Neptune to spare him and swears to sacrifice the first person he encounters on . 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 music 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.