Immersive, innovative, impressive. Don’t miss Aida next month!

• Opens 19 June, Sydney Opera House

"A captivating cinematic experience that fuses live performance and video. ★★★★★" – Time Out

Don't miss the critically-acclaimed Aida, opening in the Sydney Opera House next month, and let the immersive theatrical experience transport you to the splendour of Egypt.

Opulent costumes, transcendent music, together with an ever-changing, vivid set, the massed grandeur of this story of love, triumph, and betrayal, is a visual and musical feast not to be missed.

From the epic triumph to the devastating finale, you will be impressed – don't miss the future of spectacle on stage.

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Who was the composer?

Giuseppe Verdi was one of the greatest composers the world has ever seen, dominating the Italian opera scene for most of his adult lifetime. He was born in a small village near Parma, Italy to a poor family in 1813. By the time he died in 1901, his fame was such that more than 200,000 people lined the streets at his funeral to pay him tribute.

How do you know you’re listening to Verdi? Verdi wrote big, beautiful melodies and expressive, dramatic orchestral music. As a composer, he was always seeking out strong subjects, demanding his librettists create realistic, human characterisations.

He had a special gift for taking a character marginalised by society and putting them centre stage — whether it be a courtesan in La Traviata, a hunch-backed jester in Rigoletto or an enslaved Ethiopian princess in Aida.

What happens in the story?

A rebellion is brewing on Egypt’s borders, and for both the oppressor and the oppressed, loves and loyalties are about to be tested.

Egypt needs a hero to lead their army, and the High Priest has made his choice.

Through victory in battle, Radamès hopes to win the hand of the beautiful slave girl Aida — handmaiden to the princess Amneris, and secretly, an Ethiopian princess.

Aida is torn between her love for the Egyptian hero and her despair for the country he must march against — her homeland.

And the Princess Amneris, who also desires Radamès, is beginning to have suspicions that her hero might prefer her slave…

As Radamès returns to Egypt in triumph, Aida is greeted with a terrible sight — her father Amonasro, the King of Ethiopia, is among the slaves.

Just when all seems lost, the King of Egypt deals another blow: promising the triumphant Radamès his daughter Amneris’ hand.

On the banks of the Nile, the lovers arrange to meet one last time.

But the conquered Ethiopian King has a plan to save his country. Aida has to make a devastating choice.

In the darkness, the King’s plan, Aida’s conflicted heart and Radamès’ steadfast love collide in a devastating finale.

*Source: Opera Australia   opera.australia@opera.org.au