The Seoul Metropolitan Opera will stage Giuseppe Verdi's opera "Nabucco" for the first time in 40 years since its Korean premiere in 1986. The production runs for four performances from April 9-12 at Sejong Center for the Performing Arts' Grand Theater.
Premiered at La Scala in 1842, "Nabucco" catapulted Verdi to the ranks of Italy's leading composers. Set against the Babylonian Empire's conquest of Jerusalem in the 6th century BC and the subsequent Jewish captivity, the opera explores themes of power and the yearning for freedom through grand choruses and powerful arias.
The "Chorus of the Hebrew Slaves," known as "Va, pensiero, sull'ali dorate" (Fly, thought, on wings of gold), remains one of the most beloved choral pieces today, capturing the sorrow of a displaced people and their longing for return. Legend holds that thousands sang this piece under Arturo Toscanini's direction at Verdi's funeral in 1901. This production will feature a 60-member citizen chorus to amplify the music's grandeur.
The staging evokes a "Game of Thrones"-style drama with a "chessboard of fate" concept that visualizes ancient primal energy. Large-scale set pieces, dynamic staging, and symbolic costumes maximize the opera's epic scale.
Baritones Yang Jun-mo and Choi In-sik are double-cast as Nabucco. Sopranos Seo Sun-young and Choi Ji-eun share the role of Abigaille, while mezzo-sopranos Kim Sun-jung and Lim Eun-kyung alternate as Fenena. Tenors Lee Seung-mook and Yoon Jung-su perform Ismaele, with basses Jeon Seung-hyun and Lim Chae-jun as Zaccaria.
Director Jang Seo-moon, acclaimed for the Seoul Metropolitan Opera's 2022 "Rigoletto" and the 2023 original opera "Tin Roof," helms the production. Conductor Lee Deun, the first Korean winner of the Besançon International Conducting Competition, leads the Hankyung Arte Philharmonic Orchestra. The Winner Opera Chorus and citizen choir join forces to bring the voice of community to the stage.
"This is a meaningful production, restaging the work we premiered in Korea 40 years ago," said Park Hye-jin, the company's general director. "We hope audiences will experience the powerful resonance of community through the grand choruses."
Tickets range from 50,000 won to 150,000 won ($36 to $108). Reservations are available through Sejong Culture Ticket.