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As Christian Thielemann prepares to take the reins of the Staatskapelle Dresden, the Semperoper today unveiled their strongest season in years.
The 31 operas on the 2012-13 calendar include 9 premieres. Most eagerly awaited will be Manon Lescaut, conducted by Thielemann and directed by Stefan Herheim.
Andreas Kriegenburg (of new Munich Ring notoriety) directs Handel's Orlando, and Wieler and Morabito tackle La juive. For Hans Werner Henze, a composer long associated with the house, there are new productions of Wir erreichen den Fluss and El cimarrón.
Der fliegende Holländer, Idomeneo, Das geheime Königreich by Ernst Krenek and Dorina e Nibbio by Domenico Sarro (updated by Lucia Ronchetti) complete the list of premieres. There's also a concert version of Spontini's La vestale.
Prominent among the many revivals is Der Rosenkavalier, conducted by Christian Thielemann. Soile Isokoski/Anne Schanewilms, Daniela Sindram/Elina Garanca and Joseph Calleja join a starrier than usual cast for the Semperoper (who rely mostly on their own ensemble). Thielemann is also down for Lohengrin with Robert Dean Smith, Soile Isokoski and Wolfgang Koch.