Messa da Requiem

Giuseppe Verdi’s Messa da Requiem is one of the most popular pieces in the concert repertoire. In a sensational co-production between the Oper and Ballett Zürich, Christian Spuck stages the oratorio for four vocal soloists, large choir, and orchestra as a combination of dance, abstract scenes, space, and light. Since its premiere, the production has traveled the world, appearing in 2023 in Amsterdam, Berlin, Adelaide, Helsinki, and Toronto.

Although he was no devotee of the Catholic church, Verdi set the Latin text of the Catholic funeral service to music in his requiem mass, which was premiered in 1874. His Requiem does not focus on ecclesiastical, religious messages, but rather on the last questions of universal human existence. Accordingly, Christian Spuck doesn’t present horror scenarios from the Last Judgement (which are mentioned in the Latin liturgy), choosing instead an abstract visualization of the music. His production examines a human being in the face of death and sensitively explores the notion of where we come from and where we are going – expressing everything from the terrifying proximity of death to isolation, from a sense of solidarity and community to the mourning process. By gently directing their movements, Christian Spuck links the quartet of solo vocalists with the dancers of the Ballett Zürich, who act out the enormous dramatic range of Verdi’s music, which extends from the solo dance of terror-filled Dies Irae to the intimate pas de deux of the Agnus Dei.  

The great Verdi expert Marco Armiliato appears at the podium of the Philharmonia Zürich, and joining him is a world-class cast of singers: Krassimira Stoyanova, Agnieszka Rehlis, Stephen Costello, and Georg Zeppenfeld.

On June 17, 2023 the official ticket sale for the season 23/24 starts. Friends, subscribers, and shareholders can take advantage of their advance purchase rights one week earlier.