Manon Lescaut by Puccini, sam. 25 nov. 2023, Du (2023/2024), Dirigé par Igor Pison,, Chef d'orchestre Stefan Neubert, Stadttheater Klagenfurt, Klagenfurt, Autriche

How is the human struggle between feeling and reason decided when a young couple escapes family, religious and social constraints to live their love? The story of Giacomo Puccini's third opera Manon Lescaut goes back to an autobiographical novel by the clergyman Abbé Prévost from 1731, which tells the life of the young, well-off family nobleman Des Grieux. His father had planned a career in the church for him, but when he met Manon Lescaut, who was also destined for the convent, it happened to him. Together, the two elope to Paris, where Manon first robs Des Grieux of his fortune and finally of his integrity. After criminal activities, the two have to flee into exile in the French colony of Louisiana. Manon dies there, after which Des Grieux returns to France and becomes a priest. Puccini spares his audience this moralizing ending. In his opera, Manon tragically dies in the North American desert in the arms of her desperate lover. This is how Manon Lescaut becomes a typical Puccini: with ecstatic emotions, rousing arias and duets and a broad orchestral sound that lets the audience "bathe" in the music, so to speak.