Lohengrin

A woman stands alone before a tribunal, accused of fratricide—in a realm desperately seeking a new order following a power vacuum. Desperate and without an advocate, she hopes for salvation from another world. Then Lohengrin, the mysterious Knight of the Swan, appears. He offers to fight for Elsa—but on one radical condition: she must never ask his name or his origins. Blind trust becomes the ultimate test.

Lohengrin tells the story of a society so desperate for direction that it is willing to submit to the leadership of a stranger. While Elsa wavers between love and doubt, Ortrud schemes to seize power in Brabant. Lohengrin himself remains an ambivalent figure: a savior, an instrument of higher powers, or a projection of collective longing? To what extent do humans need to be guided by charismatic figures supposedly sent by God? And how much autonomy can they be expected to handle?

In his libretto, Wagner fuses the historical figure of Henry I with the legend of the Holy Grail. At once a fairy tale and a deeply political work, the opera—which premiered in 1850—addresses issues that remain relevant today, not least the failure of unconditional love in times of political instability.

Musically, Lohengrin paves the way for the through-composed music drama. Ethereal, shimmering soundscapes, compelling characterization, and powerful choral writing transform this grand Romantic opera—poised between the promise of redemption and tragedy—into a deeply evocative sonic drama. Gerrit Prießnitz, Chief Conductor of the Tiroler Landestheater, leads the music, while director Jasmina Hadžiahmetović’s production explores what happens when blind trust becomes the guiding principle for momentous decisions.

Introductory talk 20 minutes before the performance begins

Recommended age: 14 and up

program

Lohengrin

Romantische Oper in drei Akten von Richard Wagner

Libretto vom Komponisten

In deutscher Sprache mit deutschen Übertiteln

Place

Tiroler Landestheater Innsbruck (English: Tyrolean State Theatre) is the state theatre in Innsbruck, Austria, located near the historic Altstadt (Old Town) section of the city. The theatre is surrounded by Imperial Hofburg, the Hofgarten, and SOWI Faculty of the University of Innsbruck. The main theatre has about 800 seats and the studio theatre in the basement has around 250. Plays, operas, operettas, musicals and dance theatre are performed at the theatre.