PERFORMANCE DETAIL

Libretto by Luigi Balocchi (1766–1832) and Victor-Joseph Étienne de Jouy (1764–1846)

Conductor David Švec
Stage director Vladimír John
Sung in French with Czech and English surtitles

Toward the end of his operatic career, Gioachino Rossini turned to monumental historical themes. Moses and Pharaoh marks a significant milestone in his French period. This grand opéra is a reworked and expanded version of his earlier Italian work Moses in Egypt, tailored to the traditions of French musical theatre. It premiered on 26 March 1827 at the Théâtre de l'Académie Royale de Musique in Paris.

The opera tells the story of Moses’ struggle to lead the Israelites out of Egyptian slavery, culminating in the Ten Plagues and the miraculous parting of the Red Sea. Based on the biblical narrative, the libretto introduces new characters and emotional subplots to enhance the opera’s dramatic arc and impact.

In this work, Rossini blends his characteristic virtuosic vocal writing with striking choral and scenic tableaux, fulfilling the grand opéra’s demand for monumentality and spectacle. His music is rich in emotional depth and dramatic contrast, with the chorus playing a central expressive role. Moses and Pharaoh stands as a vital precursor to Rossini’s final opera, William Tell, in which Rossini fully embraces the conventions of grand opéra. While William Tell came to embody French grand opéra with its heroic pathos and revolutionary themes, Moses and Pharaoh stands out as one of Rossini’s boldest efforts to blend Italian lyricism with French dramatic spectacle.

Premieres on 12 and 14 February 2026 at the Antonín Dvořák Theatre

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