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A Miracle in Strasbourg Strasbourg
Opéra national du Rhin
01/21/2026 - & January 24, 27, 29, February 1*, 2026
Erich Wolfgang Korngold: Das Wunder der Heliane, opus 20
Camille Schnoor (Heliane), Josef Wagner (The ruler), Ric Furman (The stranger), Kai Rüütel-Pajula (The messenger), Damien Pass (The jailor), Paul McNamara (The blind judge), Massimo Frigato (The young man), Glen Cunningham (First judge), Thomas Chenhall (Second judge), Michal Karski (Third judge), Pierre Romainville (Fourth judge), Eduard Ferenczi Gurban (Fifth judge), Daniel Dropulja (Sixth judge), Nicole van den Berg (The Angel)
Chśur de l’Opéra national du Rhin, Hendrik Hass (chorus master), Orchestre philharmonique de Strasbourg, Robert Houssart (conductor)
Jakob Peters-Messer (direction), Guido Petzold (sets, lights, video), Tanja Liebermann (costumes), Nicole van den Berg (choreography)
N. van den Berg, R. Furman, C. Schnoor (© Klara Beck)
Along with Richard Strauss and Leos Janácek, Erich Korngold is one of my favourite composers of opera. But sadly, aside from his biggest success, Die tote Stadt, his operas are rarely performed. Each season, I look in earnest to see if any of his operas have been programmed. So imagine my delight on discovering Strasbourg’s Opéra national du Rhin would present his 1927 Das Wunder der Heliane (The Miracle of Heliane). The major city in France’s easternmost region of Alsace is under two hours via TGV (high speed train) from Paris, and just over an hour from Germany’s Stuttgart. The performance I attended was a Sunday matinee, so a considerable contingent of Parisians and Germans were in attendance. Such a production is indeed a rarity, and certainly warranted the short trip.
Of course, a question came to mind: how can a midsize opera house with a capacity of 1,100 house the needed orchestra (of over 100 musicians), for, like Strauss, Korngold loved a dense sound. The problem was resolved by the use of a score adapted for a reduced orchestra, approved by the Korngold Estate, keen as they are to see the opera widely performed. While a laudable idea, the beautiful score did not captivate, as did the 1993 Decca recording with RSO Berlin and John Mauceri. However, if this is the needed compromise to experience Das Wunder der Heliane, I’ll take it.
Some artists are born with immense talent but little luck; such is the case of Korngold. Though the son of a leading Viennese critic, this fact did not advance his career. In fact, it was a major reason for the failure of Das Wunder der Heliane, following its much‑publicized premiere. The musically conservative critic pitted his son’s opera against Ernst Krenek’s jazz opera Jonny spielt auf. Judged not avant‑garde enough by the critics and too convoluted by the public for its quasi‑religious libretto, the opera soon fell out of favour, only to be eventually banned by the Nazis.
With the rise of Nazism, Korngold, a Jew, was forced to flee Europe. He moved to Hollywood and began to compose film scores. Among his compositions are Captain Blood (1935), The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938), Juarez (1939), The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex (1939), The Sea Hawk (1940), and Of Human Bondage (1946). Sadly, this professional foray affected how he was perceived; efforts to reestablish himself in Vienna after the war were unsuccessful.
Korngold announced Das Wunder der Heliane to be his masterpiece, and musically perhaps it is. The libretto is another matter. Author Hans Müller‑Einigen chose a quasi‑religious story inspired by a medieval mystery play. A despot rules over his oppressed kingdom, where joy is prohibited. His immensely beautiful wife Heliane has so far refused to consummate their marriage. A messianic stranger preaching love and empathy gives hope to the oppressed populace. Imprisoned for his revolutionary ideas, the plight of the stranger motivates Heliane to visit him there, the day before his execution. Heliane is drawn to him and grants his wish to see her naked body. Though there was no carnal intercourse, the infuriated ruler accuses Heliane of adultery and wants her tried. During her trial, the stranger stabs himself rather than endanger Heliane. She is then forced to undergo “divine judgement;” if she can bring the man back from the dead, she’ll be found innocent. Unable to, her husband then stabs her after his carnal advances are refused. Heliane’s miracle occurs: the stranger resuscitates himself and carries Heliane to Heaven.
On one level, it’s a Christian-style mystery play, but on another, it reflects the librettist’s obscure sexual obsessions. According to him, the sexual act is the loftiest way to glorify the Creator. Nonetheless, the opera’s music supersedes the odd libretto. The finale, with its orchestral buildup and dénouement, is as glorious as any by Strauss or Janácek. As mentioned, the reduced score doesn’t achieve as powerful an apotheosis as one would have liked, despite conductor Robert Houssart’s excellent musicianship.
The three lead singers were well cast, particularly Franco‑German soprano Camille Schnoor. Though an admirable lyric soprano with a beautiful timbre and ease in her upper register, the challenging role requires a more dramatic voice. But nonetheless, Schnoor rose to the occasion, without having difficulty with the sometimes stratospheric notes, and without any sign of fatigue, even during the opera’s incredible finale.
American tenor Ric Furman has both the right timbre and charisma for the messianic stranger. As does the ethereally beautiful and dignified Heliane, the stranger must have magnetic appeal to be convincing. Though Furman is known for even more dramatic roles (Tristan, for example) he was fatigued toward the end of the opera.
Austrian dramatic baritone Josef Wagner sang the role of the despot, one that is not as vocally demanding as the other two leads. However, thanks to his excellent acting, he perfectly captured the arrogance and the tenuous hold on power of a man who is, deep down, a weakling. With all his failings, Wagner poignantly personified a suffering, rejected spouse, unable to win his wife, despite his rank.
Of the secondary roles, Franco-Australian bass‑baritone Damien Pass stood out as the jailor. It’s an interesting role, in which someone who’s part of the system shows compassion to both the stranger and Heliane. Estonian mezzo Kai Rüütel‑Pajula was convincing as the messenger, a sinister vindictive figure who impersonates the conformist bureaucrat. As the ruler’s previous lover, she seemed determined to destroy both Heliane and the messenger. Though the role is vocally undemanding, Rüütel‑Pajula was a larger‑than‑life, nasty piece of work, and therefore eminently watchable.
Choreographer and dancer Nicole van den Berg portrayed an Angel that at times consoled Heliane. While an effective gimmick, compensating for the minimal sets, the dancing was distracting.
Jakob Peters-Messer’s staging and Guido Petzold’s sets were functional, but I had hoped for more. Minimalist and dull, they were elevated by the intelligent use of lighting and video projections. In Act I, the stranger’s prison cell consisted of nothing more than his bed and the bare white walls. When Heliane was around, stills of Hedy Lamarr from her Czech film Ecstasy (1933) were in the background, emphasizing her sensuality. In Act II, the trial of the stranger and Heliane was a recreation of the tribunal of the terrorist group Baader‑Meinhof. This was confounding, as I doubt Peters‑Messer wanted to equate the radical group with victims of oppression.
In Act III, the crowd was rendered vivid thanks to Tanja Liebermann’s costumes, ranging from disgruntled workers, an imam from a mosque in traditional garb, and a high society dame sporting a Louis Vuitton bag. The finale was passably successful, with the apotheosis of Heliane and the stranger created through a flood of light.
The masterpiece Die tote Stadt premiered in Strasbourg twenty‑five years ago. It’s remarkable that Das Wunder der Heliane, which Korngold considered to be his greatest opera, was finally given its French premiere in the same city, ninety‑nine years later. Let’s hope this courageous endeavour will inspire others to mount this fine work. Indeed, miracles can happen.
Ossama el Naggar
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