Aida by Verdi, Fr. 18 Apr. 2025, Ab (2025/2025), Unter der Regie von Jasmina Hadziahmetovic, Dirigat Johannes Willig, Staatstheater, Karlsruhe, Deutschland

Aida occupies a special place even in Giuseppe Verdi's work. It is the epitome of opera: characters, conflicts, passions, places of longing - all of this is created by the power of music and the singing voice. The Egypt that Verdi takes us to is an archaic world of rituals, strict rules and strong emotions. The priests rule over the fate of the people unshakably, and yet their passions break out almost uncontrollably. The general Radamès was destined for the Pharaoh's daughter Amneris, but no power in the world can dissuade him from his love for the Ethiopian slave Aida. She entangles him and others in insoluble conflicts between their duties and their desires. No other Verdi opera ends as tragically and yet with such a complete victory for love as this one. Aida - that is a martial triumphal march as well as a delicate cantilena or the enchanting final trio. First performed in Cairo in 1871, the opera is not based on a drama from world literature, but on a scene sketch by the influential Egyptologist Auguste Mariette, who shaped the image of the mythical land on the Nile like hardly anyone else in Europe. Verdi did not need anything more to create an opera based solely on a musical-dramatic idea and perfect effect.