Romeo and Juliet

OPERA in the CRYPT
Charles Gounod

An intense experience between opera and dream: in the unique setting of the crypt of St. Peter’s Church, a tragic love story unfolds, full of fateful beauty. The ideal cast gives the music delicate intimacy and dramatic depth – close, vivid, and romantic.
The outstanding acoustics of the crypt lend Gounod’s music a new immediacy: sensual, delicate, and breathtakingly beautiful.
With its 80 seats, the crypt is the perfect venue for this deeply moving work. Without distance from the audience, the artists sing and perform directly in front of and among the guests. Slightly shortened (without chorus) with exquisite piano accompaniment, the focus remains on the great voices and allows deep insight into the composition.
Established as Austria’s smallest opera theatre, performances in the CRYPT impress with their immediacy, high quality, and unusual venue. Located deep beneath St. Peter’s Church in Vienna, the intimate hall offers a personal experience that resonates long afterward.

The CRYPT is comfortably temperate in every season.

Synopsis

Act One
Romeo and Mercutio Montague, masked, have intruded on the masquerade of the rival Capulet family. When Romeo meets Julia, Capulet’s daughter, it is love at first sight. But her cousin Tybalt immediately recognizes the hated Montague. When he demands satisfaction, Count Capulet resolves the situation and allows the ball to continue. Romeo and his friends leave the party.

Act Two
At night, Romeo secretly sneaks into the Capulet garden. When he sees Julia on the balcony, they confess their love to each other. They arrange a secret marriage and part with deep affection.

Act Three
Father Lorenzo is entrusted with the secret of their love. Hoping to end the old family feud, he marries them. Meanwhile, Stéphano searches for Romeo in vain. His mocking song about Juliet leaving her family soon attracts the Capulets. What begins as a quarrel with the Montagues present escalates into a fight to the death. Tybalt kills Romeo’s friend Mercutio. When Romeo arrives, grief overwhelms him. Furious, he kills Tybalt. As punishment, the Duke banishes him from the city.

Act Four
Romeo bids farewell to his Julia, who lets him go with a heavy heart. Her father reminds her of the engagement to Count Paris and the upcoming wedding. Desperate, she asks Father Lorenzo for help. Lorenzo gives her a potion that puts her into a deep sleep, making her appear dead. After her burial, Romeo is to rescue her from the crypt and flee with her. Full of hope, she drinks it and lies as if dead.

Act Five
Since Lorenzo’s message does not reach Romeo, he believes Julia truly dead. Alone with the supposed corpse in the Capulet crypt, he drinks deadly poison. Then his beloved awakens. When Julia understands, she seizes Romeo’s dagger and takes her own life.

Program and cast

Juliette Capulet: Leah Manning
Roméo Montaigu: Sergio Tallo-Torres
Tybalt: Andrés Alzate
Count Capulet: Max Sahliger
Gertrude/Stéphano: Eli Our
Mercutio: Jubin Amiri
Friar Laurence: Christian Michael

Musical Director: Ekaterina Nokkert
Production/Lighting: Dorothee Stanglmayr