Wagner is usually portrayed as strong-willed and single-minded. That picture is accurate to a large degree, yet there were times when the composer could be a little unsure of himself. One of those times occurred at the beginning of the creation of Lohengrin.

   Wagner himself discusses this in his autobiography, My Life. In accordance with his usual procedure, he wrote a poem for Lohengrin to serve as his libretto. The story line was the same as that of the opera we know today:  Lohengrin’s bride, Elsa, asks the forbidden questions (Who are you? Where do you come from?) and Lohengrin feels compelled to answer them. But he thereby breaks a protective spell and must abandon Elsa and return to the place from whence he mysteriously appeared. As he sails away, the heart-broken Elsa falls dead.

   Wagner read his poem to a close friend, Dr. Hermann Franck, who was troubled by the ending. Franck suggested that it was Lohengrin who should die because of Elsa’s betrayal. Wagner rejected this, yet a seed of doubt had been planted and he began to toy with the idea of allowing Elsa to live and go away with Lohengrin, though she would have to do some kind of penance for asking the questions she had promised not to ask.

   Now a third voice entered the discussion. Wagner showed the poem to another acquaintance, Mrs. August von Lüttichau, who fully agreed with Wagner’s version. The composer was delighted; he could leave the poem unaltered. However, another friend, the philologist Adolf Stahr, revived Wagner’s doubts. He wrote a letter strongly backing the views of Franck. His arguments were so persuasive that the composer himself changed his mind.

   Now Franz Liszt, Wagner’s friend and future father-in-law, entered the fray.  Upon hearing that the final act might change, he argued vehemently that Wagner’s initial instincts had been right all along. That finally put an end to the discussion.  Yet, a little lingering uncertainty may have remained. Wagner says that he decided, for the first (and only) time in his life, to compose the music of the last act first. To him, this apparently represented a kind of setting it in concrete, so that he could go back and compose the first and second acts without any lingering concerns that the last act might change.

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·FEATURE STORY: Lohen-Behold

·SPECIAL FEATURE: Be Pampered by The Dallas Opera

·MUSICAL NOTE: Keeping Up with Our Rising Stars

·FOR YOUR VIEWING PLEASURE: A Special Message from Karen Stone

·OPERA 101:  Heldentenor

·DID YOU KNOW: Lohengrin's "Bridal Chorus"

February 11 - Opera Insights-Lohengrin 

February 15 -  Lohengrin-Opening Night Performance (Thursday)

February 17 - Townhall Meeting and Young Artists Concert 

February 18 - Lohengrin-Sunday Matinee Performance

February 20 - Amici di Opera Mixer at Obar

February 21 - Lohengrin-Mid-Week Performance

February 24 - Lohengrin-Saturday Performance

You give and you give! Now it's our turn!

The Dallas Opera wants to send you to the opera to celebrate 50 fabulous seasons and the romance of Valentine’s Day. Just tell us why you think you deserve to be pampered and a handsome opera star will hand-deliver tickets and a luxurious gift basket!

Here's what you'll get:

• A pair of tickets to The Dallas Opera's Lohengrin, plus a backstage tour
• Dallas Opera merchandise
• A gift certificate for a romantic dinner for two
• A gift certificate for a relaxing spa treatment
• A dozen roses
• Champagne
• All personally delivered by the sizzling Michael Todd Simpson, who will be appearing in Lohengrin as The King's Herald.

You know you deserve it. Now tell us why.
Click here to enter.

   With our 19^th annual Vocal Competition only weeks away, we thought you’d enjoy hearing how the careers of some of our past winners have blossomed on the heels of their success in Dallas — thanks to their talent, hard work, and your support.

2006 Winners

   All three 2006 winners are currently Artists in Residence at the Academy of Vocal Arts in Philadelphia.

   First place winner Takesha Kizart (soprano) has just signed with artistic manager Tim Menah in London, who obviously feels as optimistic about her future as we did here in Dallas!  A former vocal performance honors student at UNT, she has won numerous competitions throughout the world, including national semi-finalist for the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, Marian Anderson Historical Society, Mario Lanza Institute Vocal Scholarship Competition, Opera Index, and, recently, Grand Prize winner of the Voci Verdiane International Competition in Busseto, Italy, the first African-American to ever win the Grand Prize.  She has sung with the Dallas Opera, the Fort Worth Opera, the Fort Worth Symphony, Concert Operetta Theater in Philadelphia, and the Haddonfield Symphony, among others. She will appear later this month in Samuel Barber’s Vanessa at the Academy of Vocal arts in Philadelphia.