Orpheus in the Underworld

Bored by her passionless marriage to the drab musician Orpheus, Eurydice prefers to amuse herself with Pluto, the lord of the underworld, and is—quite unlike her mythological model—more than happy to let herself be carried off to the realm of the dead. When Jupiter, the king of the gods, also learns of the beautiful mortal, a jocular competition for Eurydice’s favour ensues.

In this first major work by the ‘father of modern operetta’, rousing Parisian dance music meets orchestral virtuosity, culminating in the world-famous can-can. Offenbach’s mythological burlesque is carried by a playful ensemble of the highest calibre, ready to follow Max Hopp’s narration as they dive into a gaudy underworld. With Barrie Kosky’s production, an absolute audience favourite is onstage again at the Komische Oper Berlin.

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Opéra-bouffon in two acts und four pictures [1858/1874] by Jacques Offenbach
Libretto by Ludovic Halévy and Hector Crémieux