With the opera "Le nozze di Figaro" commenced the remarkably successful cooperation between Mozart and his librettist Lorenzo da Ponte. The first night of "Figaro", presumably Mozart's most perfect musical comedy, was held in Vienna on May 1st, 1786. It is based on Beumarchais' "scandalous" comedy "La Folle Journée ou Le Mariage de Figaro" which, after its first staging in the pre-revolutionary Paris of 1784, soon became a huge success throughout Europe. For the opera, the revolutionary content of the intricate comedy of love and conspiracy against the background of noble capriciousness was actually toned down but not completely abandoned. The extensive ensemble scenes, the treatment of the orchestra and the delicately nuanced musical profiles of the characters hit the target and, looking back, proved to be pioneering for following generations of musicians.

On Christmas Eve, the parents of Clara and Fritz have invited guests. Among them is Clara’s godfather Drosselmeyer, who presents her with a nutcracker. Clara is delighted and finally falls asleep with her Christmas present tucked under her arm. But at midnight Drosselmeyer appears as a wizard and transforms the Nutcracker into a prince.

In Luther's beer-cellar, lusty singing extols the virtues of beer and wine. For this evening, the Muse decides to deflect the poet Hoffmann's attention from amorous escapades, so that he will devote himself entirely to his art. Hoffmann tells of the three unhappy loves of his life: Olympia, Antonia and Giulietta.

The Queen of the Night has begged Prince Tamino to free her daughter Pamina from the clutches of the High Priest Sarastro, who has abducted her. Together with the bird-catcher Papageno, Tamino enters Sarastro's realm to seek her. When he finds her, the two fall in love, but they have to have to undergo ordeals before they can be together. At the end, Papageno is also rewarded with his Papagena.

Don Giovanni, opera in two acts by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (Italian libretto by Lorenzo da Ponte) that premiered at the original National Theatre in Prague on October 29, 1787. The opera’s subject is Don Juan, the notorious libertine of fiction, and his eventual descent into hell. For Mozart, it was an unusually intense work, and it was not entirely understood in his own time. Within a generation, however, it was recognized as one of the greatest of all operas. Presented by the Salzburg Marionette Theatre with narration provided by Sir Peter Ustinov.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's "Abduction from the Seraglio" is a famous spectacle that is enigmatic and exotic at the same time - and just because of this it is not only perfect for the fantastic stage sets of the marionette theatre, but for Ustinov's winking presentation as well. Already in 1782 the Vienna audience was enchanted by the lyrical drama by which the new inhabitant Mozart presented himself as master of opera to the audience of the imperial city. On the one hand, "The Abduction of the Seraglio" is a subtle comedy, on the other hand it conveys important humanitarian values: the Europeans captured in an Ottoman palace are not saved by a military attack but by the generosity of the sovereign "Selim Bassa" - actually mortal enemy of the Habsburg monarchy which was at war with Turkey in Mozart's time!

Così fan tutte, comic opera in two acts by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart that premiered in Vienna on January 26, 1790. It is the last of his three operas with librettist Lorenzo da Ponte, the first two being The Marriage of Figaro (1786) and Don Giovanni (1787). Presented by the Salzburg Marionette Theatre with narration by Sir Peter Ustinov.

Live from Glyndebourne 1994. The first production to be filmed Live in Glyndebourne´s new opera house May 1994. The Marriage of Figaro is a continuation of the plot of The Barber of Seville several years later, and recounts a single “day of madness” in the palace of the Count Almaviva near Seville, Spain. Rosina is now the Countess; Dr. Bartolo is seeking revenge against Figaro for thwarting his plans to marry Rosina himself; and Count Almaviva has degenerated from the romantic youth of Barber into a scheming, bullying, skirt-chasing baritone. This follows the Count trying to obtain favours from Susanna, Figaro’s bride to be, under the nose of the Countess.

Charming, light-hearted and fizzing with subversive wit, Neil Armfield's sparkling production of the marriage of Figaro captures Mozart's most popular Opera. In this classic performance, recorded live at the Sydney Opera House, Patrick Summers conducts a energetic fresh-voiced cast, headed up by baritone Teddy Tahu Rhodes and Taryn Fiebig who make a vivacious, appealing pairing as Figaro and Susanna, while Peter Coleman-Wright triumps as the lascivious Count Almaviva.

Live performance of Mozart's opera buffa "Le nozze di Figaro" from the Glyndebourne Festival Opera in 1973, featuring Knut Skram, Ileana Cotrubas, Benjamin Luxon, Kiri Te Kanawa, and Frederica von Stade.