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On his return home from the Trojan War, Idomeneo, King of Crete, is caught with his ship in a violent storm. Amid the turbulent waves and looming cliffs, he makes a terrible vow to Neptune, the god of the sea: if he and his men are spared, he will sacrifice the first person he encounters on dry land. When Idomeneo washes up on a beach in Crete and lays eyes on his own child, Idamante, he finds himself plunged in a veritable nightmare.
With Idomeneo, the 25-year-old Mozart made his major breakthrough as an opera composer. With its unbridled lyricism, richly varied arias and emotional depth, the opera is ideally suited to conductor Enrico Onofri. Director Calixto Bieito will dive into the labyrinthine head of Idomeneo, where memories ebb and flow, as if from the depths of the sea.
Are you under 30? Then attend this opera on the Young Opera Night (12.3.2026) and we treat you to a personal welcome, a free drink, a free programme book and an after-event.