Idomeneo: Paris Opera
About the Event
The Trojan War is over. Idomeneo, the King of Crete, returns home after ten years of absence, but encounters a terrible storm on his way. To appease Neptune, he promises to sacrifice the first person he encounters on the shore, without realising that it will be… his own son!
It was to this libretto by Giambattista Varesco that Prince‐Elector Karl‐Theodor of Bavaria commissioned Mozart to write an opera seria for the Munich Carnival of 1781.
The composer poured all the exuberance of his 25 years into the work, magnifying the orchestra and chorus by drawing inspiration from the model of French lyric tragedy. The result is music alternately tender and grandiose, studded with dazzlingly beautiful arias.
After Œdipe in 2021 and Pelléas et Mélisande in 2025, Wajdi Mouawad returns to the Paris Opera to stage Idomeneo.
Cast / Production
Creative team
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Music (1756‑1791)
Abbé Giambattista Varesco
Libretto after Antoine Danchet
Antonello Manacorda
Conductor
Wajdi Mouawad
Director
Emmanuel Clolus
Set design
Emmanuelle Thomas
Costume design
Cécile Kretschmar
Wigs, make‐up
Éric Champoux
Lighting design
Daphné Mauger
Choreographer
Charlotte Farcet
Dramaturgy
Alessandro Di Stefano
Chorus master
Cast
Allan Clayton
Idomeneo
Lea Desandre
Idamante
Johanna Wallroth
Ilia
Elsa Dreisig
Elettra
Laurence Kilsby
Arbace
Bergsvein Toverud
Gran Sacerdote di Nettuno
Morgan‐Andrew King
La Voce
The Paris Opera Orchestra and Chorus
