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Die Liebe der Danae

also The Love of Danae

opera · Heitere Mythologie in drei Akten

Composer Richard Strauss

Librettist Joseph Gregor

Synopsis

Danae, whose father Pollux is ruined and beset by creditors, dreams of a rich husband arriving as a shower of gold. King Midas, who can turn anything to it, agrees to court her, but Jupiter, hungry for one more conquest, means to take Midas's place and claim her for himself.

Key facts

Premiere
14 August 1952
Acts
3
Language
German (de)
Setting
The island kingdom of Eos, and the Syrian desert, in the mythical past.

Notes

The only version. The libretto is by Joseph Gregor, working from an outline by Hofmannsthal. Composed in 1938–40, the opera had already been heard once, at a private dress rehearsal in Salzburg on 16 August 1944 that stood in for the public premiere the war then prevented; Strauss did not live to see the public one.

Dramatis personae

Role Voice Created by
Jupiter King of the gods. baritone Paul Schöffler
Merkur Jupiter's messenger. tenor Josef Traxel
Pollux King of Eos. tenor László Szemere
Danae Pollux's daughter. soprano Annelies Kupper
Xanthe Danae's servant. soprano Anny Felbermayer
Midas King of Lydia. tenor Josef Gostic
Semele Wife of one of Pollux's nephews. soprano Dorothea Siebert
Europa Wife of one of Pollux's nephews. soprano Esther Réthy
Alkmene Wife of one of Pollux's nephews. mezzo-soprano Georgine von Milinkovič
Leda Wife of one of Pollux's nephews. contralto Sieglinde Wagner

Source

Original libretto.

Written from