Handel's Theodora

Handel's own favorite of his oratorios makes a triumphant return to Covent Garden after nearly three centuries! Joyce DiDonato, Jakub Józef Orliński, and Julia Bullock take top billing in this exquisite production of Theodora, a rarely performed work first heard in 1750 — on this very same prestigious stage — before largely falling into obscurity until the 20th century, when it met with critical and public reevaluation in recordings by Nikolaus Harnoncourt and a full 1996 Glyndebourne staging by Peter Sellars.

In 4th-century Antioch under Roman rule, the governor Valens orders his citizens, on pain of death, to celebrate the emperor Diocletian's birthday by making a sacrifice to two Roman goddesses. Theodora (soprano Julia Bullock) and her friend Irene (mezzo-soprano Joyce DiDonato), both Christians, face a dilemma: obey and keep their lives, or refuse and meet their end as martyrs? Theodora decides to contravene the order but finds herself condemned to prostitution in the temple of Venus. Officer Didymus (countertenor Jakub Józef Orliński), a secret Christian convert in love with Theodora, helps her escape in disguise — but she then learns that he has been imprisoned, and that the governor is now calling for her death. She returns to plead for Didymus's life, but the governor may refuse to show clemency…

Katie Mitchell's 2022 staging at the Royal Opera House transposes the action to the present day, casting Theodora and Irene as employees plotting to destroy the Roman embassy, where they work as cooks. The top-notch cast, accompanied by the house's world-renowned orchestra under Harry Bicket, ensures that this now-beloved work will maintain its hard-won place in the operatic canon.

This production contains scenes of sexual violence, harassment, and exploitation; discretion is advised for younger viewers.
Photo © Camilla Greenwell