A masterly and nuanced portrayal of hopeless love.
Massenet
Werther
“This piece has everything” mezzo-soprano Joyce DiDonato
Werther, the young poet. Charlotte, the woman he loves. And his best friend Albert, to whom she is engaged. Massenet transforms the triangle of Goethe’s hugely influential novel of impossible love into a hauntingly gentle and lyrical opera that sensitively traces the unfolding of a hopeless passion. So hopeless that, when Charlotte’s hot and cold feelings cause her to turn away from Werther yet again, tragedy cannot be averted.
Italian tenor Paride Cataldo sings the title role, with Cork mezzo-soprano Niamh O’Sullivan, who starred in INO’s Olivier Award winning production of Bajazet (2022), as Charlotte. Full cast includes baritone Charles Rice as Albert, soprano Sarah Shine as Sophie and baritone Wyn Pencarreg as Le Bailli, with tenor Eamonn Mulhall as Schmidt and baritone Owen Gilhooly-Miles as Johann. Philipp Pointner conducts the Irish National Opera orchestra.
Werther is directed by Sophie Motley, designed by Sarah Bacon, with lighting design by Sarah Jane Shiels and features a new orchestration by Richard Peirson.
