Now In Korea
Wagner’s 6-hour Masterpiece “Tristan und Isolde” Premieres in Korea
Creatrip Team
4 months ago
The National Opera of Korea and the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra will co-present the Korean premiere of Richard Wagner’s Tristan und Isolde at the Seoul Arts Center Opera House from December 4–7. The full staged production — running about six hours with two intermissions and starting at 3 PM — marks the first complete operatic staging in Korea (a 2012 concert-opera version without sets or costumes had been performed). Tristan und Isolde, completed in 1859 and first staged in 1865, is a landmark work in which Wagner pioneered the music-drama form, using techniques such as endless melody and leitmotifs and the famous “Tristan chord,” influencing 20th-century music. The tragic medieval legend of Tristan and Isolde is presented here in a new production by Swiss director Stephan Märki, who reimagines the sea voyage as a vast journey through space. Conductor Jaap van Zweden, experienced with Wagner, leads the performances. Veteran Wagnerian singers are double-cast in the title roles, including heroic tenors (called “Heldentenor”) Stuart Skelton and Brian Register as Tristan, and sopranos Catherine Foster and Eliška Weissová as Isolde — all noted for appearances at the Bayreuth Festival (a pilgrimage site for Wagner fans). Organizers say the production signals Korea’s readiness to tackle Wagner’s profound musical and philosophical world; the only major Wagner work yet unproduced domestically is the four-opera Ring Cycle (Der Ring des Nibelungen).
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