Old man, what are you doing?
Lear
Aribert Reimann
Premiere
A storm is brewing! Lear, the stunning masterpiece opera by Aribert Reimann, is returning to the Komische Oper Berlin, where this monumental tale of an ageing king was previously staged by Harry Kupfer and Hans Neuenfels. At Tempelhof Airport, Barrie Kosky is now presenting his astonishing vision of the battle for power that rages over Shakespeare’s haunting father figure.
King Lear is inching toward death. He plans to divide his kingdom among his three daughters, with the largest share going to the one who shows him the greatest love. While Goneril and Regan try to outdo one another in their lavish declarations, Cordelia, the youngest, rejects the contest. She, who truly loves her father, refuses to participate – thereby wounding him deeply.
King Lear is inching toward death. He plans to divide his kingdom among his three daughters, with the largest share going to the one who shows him the greatest love. While Goneril and Regan try to outdo one another in their lavish declarations, Cordelia, the youngest, rejects the contest. She, who truly loves her father, refuses to participate – thereby wounding him deeply.
As a result, Lear disowns his favourite daughter. Now lacking a dowry, she is married off by her father to the King of France, who later decides to invade Lear’s lands. The kingdom is divided between Goneril and Regan, who eventually unite in open contempt for their ageing father. Accompanied only by his Fool, the old king wanders across an open field through rain and storm at night…
Premiering in 1978, Aribert Reimann’s Lear condenses Shakespeare’s monumental drama into eleven scenes, some unfolding simultaneously, creating a timeless masterpiece of unparalleled vocal and instrumental power. Barrie Kosky stages this classic of modern music theatre as the endgame of a king who knows how little time he has left, yet refuses to hear the truth. A man who is loved, but must die alone.
Opera in two parts, after William Shakespeare
adapted by Claus H. Henneberg [1978]
adapted by Claus H. Henneberg [1978]
Premiere on September 16, 2026