Dutch National Opera

Salome

Richard Strauss (1864-1949)

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Dates

6, 12 and 14 Feb 2022

Location

Dutch National Opera & Ballet, Auditorium

Running time

1:45, no intermission

Tickets

n.a.

Uncontrollable desire and diabolical innocence

The staged production of Salome had to be cancelled, but we are pleased to announce that we can now present three concert performances with the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Cornelius Meister, and the original cast.

Uncontrollable desire and diabolical innocence

When Salome flees the banquet at the court in Judea and the lascivious stares of her stepfather, King Herod, she is intrigued by the voice of the intractable prophet Jochanaan. When he rejects her advances, her desire turns into bloodthirstiness. In a show of manipulation, muscle-flexing and seduction, Salome then performs a dance for her stepfather, whom she manipulates into ordering the execution of Jochanaan. Now she can finally kiss his lips, which bear the bitter taste of blood.

Star cast

This season, we present a concert version of this intense and sensual music drama will be accompanied from the pit by the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra, led by Cornelius Meister. The dramatic soprano Jennifer Holloway, whose portrayal of Salome has won international praise, will make her Dutch National Opera debut. Returning to DNO are Brian Mulligan, making his role debut as the prophet Jochanaan, and mezzo-soprano Doris Soffel as the villainous and conceited Herodias. With a star cast of both well-known and new faces, this concert promises to enchant, move and fascinate.

Performance information

Salome - concert

Musical direction Cornelius Meister

Herodes Thomas Blondelle
Herodias Doris Soffel
Salome Jennifer Holloway
Jochanaan Brian Mulligan
Narraboth Gerard Schneider
Ein Page der Herodias Maya Gour*

Juden
Christophe Poncet de Solages
Marcel Reijans
Mark Omvlee
Linard Vrielink
Ildo Song

Nazarener
Roger Smeets
David Steffens

Souldiers
Frederik Bergman
ChanHee Cho*

Ein Kappadozier Maksym Nazarenko*
*Dutch National Opera Studio
A slave
Jeroen de Vaal

Orchestra Rotterdams Philharmonisch Orkest

Sung in German

Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra

The Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra, founded in 1918, is known for the intensity of its concerts and its colourful sound. Under the direction of conductor Lahav Shani, the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra is known for its colourful sound. Lahav Shani’s predecessors Yannick Nézet-Séguin and Valery Gergiev are both honorary conductors of the orchestra. Recent DNO productions for the orchestra were the European premiere of John Adams’ Girls of the Golden West in 2019 and Kurt Weill: The Seven Deadly Sins in 2021. This season they will join us in the pit for the revival of Ivo van Hove’s sensual one-act opera Salome.

Cornelius Meister - conductor

The acclaimed Cornelius Meister proved to be an exceptional talent when he made his debut at the Hamburgische Staatsoper at the age of 21. He has mastered a particularly wide repertoire, including both Die Zauberflöte and Der Ring des Nibelungen as well as the integral symphonies of Bruckner and Martinů and numerous world premieres. Since 2018, he has been chief conductor of the Staatsoper and the Staatsorchester Stuttgart. With this concertante version of Strauss' Salome, he makes his debut with Dutch National Opera.

Photo: Marco Borggreve

Cornelius Meister and Richard Strauss
Cornelius Meister regularly conducts Richard Strauss' works, including all of his symphonic poems. Salome he has already conducted at the Dresden Semperoper with the Sächsische Staatskapelle, the Zurich Opera and others. He began his current opera season of 2021/22 with a new concert performance of Strauss' Der Rosenkavalier at the Staatsoper Stuttgart.

Guest conducting
Several guest conducting engagements have so far brought Meister to the Concertgebouw Orchestra Amsterdam, the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and the Orchestre de Paris, among others. He is also a welcome guest at several opera houses, including the Royal Opera House Covent Garden in London, the Wiener Staatsoper, the Metropolitan Opera New York and the prestigious La Scala.

Salome | Photo: Milagro Elstak

6 February

No chopped-off head, no dance with seven veils, but 'Salome' hits like a bomb

8 February

The National Opera knows how to give a beastly voice to Salome's perverse story

7 February

The [Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra] was conducted by Cornelius Meister, a Strauss specialist who was clearly enjoying his DNO debut. He allowed the orchestra to whirl and sway and gave the singers plenty of room