Wagner's Parsifal

Jakub Hrůša conducts Evgeny Titov’s production of Wagner’s Parsifal at the Royal Ballet and Opera.

Dogged by a wound from the Holy Spear that will not heal, the Knights of the Grail attempt to cure their ailing leader, Amfortas, whose ruin has been blamed both on wild-woman Kundry and his enemy Klingsor, to whom he lost the Holy Spear. Enter Parsifal, who has just killed a sacred swan, and who Gurnemanz – a Knight of the Grail – wonders might embody the ‘pure fool’ spoken of in the prophecies. Invited by Gurnemanz to a ritual intended to renew the immortality of the Knights, using the blood of Christ, Parsifal is later seduced by Kundry, who acts under the orders of Klingsor. Initially immune to the attractions of both her and the seductive Flower Maidens, Parsifal succumbs to Kundry’s kiss but recalls his mission to cure Amfortas and shuns Kundry’s advances. His restorative powers then receive their ultimate test during a final ritual gathering of the Knights. A top cast includes Stanislas de Barbeyrac as the 'pure fool' Parsifal, Ekaterina Gubanova as the shape-shifting Kundry, and Christian Gerhaher the ailing King of the knights of the Grail.

Andrew McGregor presents and is joined in the box by the Rev Lucy Winkett.

Recorded at the Royal Ballet and Opera in October.

Wagner: Parsifal

Parsifal ….. Stanislas de Barbeyrac (tenor)
Kundry ….. Ekaterina Gubanova (mezzo-soprano)
Amfortas ….. Christian Gerhaher (baritone)
Gurnemanz ….. Brindley Sherratt (bass)
Klingsor ….. Mark Stone (baritone)
Titurel ….. James Platt (bass)
First Knight ….. Ryan Vaughan Davies (tenor)
Second Knight ….. Jack Sandison (bass-baritone)
First Esquire ….. Elizabeth Karani (soprano)
Second Esquire ….. Lily Mo Browne (mezzo-soprano)
Third Esquire ….. Giorgi Guliashvili (tenor)
Fourth Esquire ….. Emyr Lloyd Jones (tenor)
Flowermaidens ….. Chelsea Zurflüh (soprano) Rhian Lois (soprano), Sarah Richmond (mezzo-soprano), Sarah Brady (soprano), Marianna Hovanisyan (soprano), Ellen Pearson (mezzo-soprano)
Voice from Above ….. Nikola Printz (mezzo-soprano)

Chorus and Orchestra of the Royal Opera House
Jakub Hrůša (conductor)

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