Tristan And Isolde Tickets

The storyline, creative team and critical reception of this opera should be enough to make you want to grab the tickets today.

Tristan and Isolde Synopsis

Following the downfall of the mighty Roman Empire, an English orphan Tristan meets the Irish princess Isolde. Soon, he falls in love with her but unfortunately, she is all set to marry Lord Marke, the man who raised Tristan. To escape, they both decide to drink poison. However, the poison made by Isolde’s maid, Brangane, actually turns out to be a love potion, making the Tristan and Isolde fall hopelessly in love with each other. It isn’t long before the king finds out about his budding romance and feels betrayed by his wife and nephew. In a quick move, the king’s other loyalist, Melot, takes an aim at Tristan with his sword and injures him. The third act shows Tristan’s home castle in Brittany, France, where he lies seriously injured. By the time Isolde arrives, Tristan has already died. King Marke appears and finds out that the two young lovebirds had indeed taken the love potion. The closing scenes of the drama show Isolde’s final fate decided, as she chooses to kill herself and join Tristan in the afterlife.

Critical Reception to Tristan and Isolde

Initially, the musical drama received mixed reviews, including really negative remarks as well. For instance, the famous German musician and composer, Clara Schumann, said that Tristan and Isolde was “the most repugnant thing I have ever seen or heard in my entire life”. However, it wasn’t long before the reviews started to change and the ratings began to increase. Arnold Schoenberg, the composer, musician and painter praised Wagner’s chord-shifting technique in the play as a“phenomena of incredible adaptability and non-independence roaming, homeless, among the spheres of keys; spies reconnoitering weaknesses; to exploit them in order to create confusion, deserters for whom surrender of their own personality is an end in itself". Friedrich Nietzsche, who was among Wagner’s closest friends at one point in time said that Tristan and Isolde is an “insatiable and sweet craving for the secrets of night and death…it is overpowering in its simple grandeur.” In addition to remarks by such famed individuals, Tristan and Isolde was also a critic favorite in newspapers and magazines. The Evening Standard called the music drama ‘brave and bold…theatrically enthralling’. The Financial Times also made a comment calling the show ‘grand and enveloping’.

The Creative Team of Tristan and Isolde

The Creative Team behind this wonderful opera comprises of dedicated, experienced and hardworking people. The conductor, Edward Gardner studied at Cambridge University and RAM. His many successes have landed him prestigious awards such as the RPS Award in 2008 and the Olivier Award for Outstanding Achievement in Opera in 2009. In 2012, he was also awarded OBE. The director for the opera, Daniel Kramer is an internationally acclaimed opera and theatre director with countless previously successful engagements. He studied at the Northwestern University, Ecole de Mime Corporeal Dramatique. He has also participated as a guest artist and professor at Harvard University, NYU, and Brown University.

And then there is the famed set designer, Anish Kapoor, who was born in Mumbai and is now regarded as one of the most influential artists today. He has had his work displayed in several solo exhibitions and has also represented Britain at the 44^th Venice Biennale, for which he won the Turner Prize in 1991. In addition to having a wonderful set designer, Tristan and Isolde also has a critically acclaimed costume designer, Christina Cunningham. She has previously designed costumes for operas such as The Fall of the City of Mahagonny and A Dog’s Heart.

With such a wonderful and intense storyline, combined with the ideal creative team and lots of critical acclaim, there is certainly no reason for you to miss out on this amazing opera. Get your hands on your Tristan and Isolde tickets as soon as possible!