Wolf Trap: Strauss - Ariadne auf Naxos

The best laid plans often go awry… Strauss’ soaring opera is divinely comical and deeply enchanting.

ARIADNE AUF NAXOS
Music by Richard Strauss
Libretto by Hugo von Hofmannsthal

A New Production

Combining slapstick comedy and beautiful music in a competition of “high” and “low” art, Ariadne auf Naxos is a cock-eyed tale about art, love, and infidelity. A wealthy patron commissions two pieces of entertainment for a party—an opera based on the Ariadne myth and a comedy by a song and dance troupe. Shortly before the performances are to begin, he orders that they be performed simultaneously in order for a fireworks display to begin on time. What follows is a class war in Strauss’ brilliant opera based on a Molière comedy.

“A tale of everyday farce and mythical fantasy.” The New York Times exclaims Ariadne auf Naxos is “plush and lyrical.”

Inside the Opera pre-show talk begins 1 hour before curtain at The Barns
Performance running time: 2.5 hours including one intermission
Sung in German with projected English translations