Closing Tomorrow: Tristan und Isolde, San Francisco Opera

Simon O'Neill as Tristan and Anja Kampe as Isolde

Tristan und Isolde, Fall, 2024

Photo: Cory Weaver, courtesy of San Francisco Opera

There's just one performance left at San Francisco Opera of Richard Wagner's monumental opera Tristan und Isolde, and (unfortunately if you're a U.S. citizen and/or you care about the outcome of the election) it's tomorrow night, Tuesday, November 5, 2024, at 6 pm.

I'm here to tell you, if you want some distraction from the election or you want to see some great opera, get yourself a ticket. Tristan has as one of its themes the nature of oblivion, and the music will transport you. I have seen the final dress rehearsal (which we don't review, but I will tell you that at the end I was pretty sure we were in for something special on opening night), the first, second, and fourth performances in person, and the livestream of the third, and one result is that I am haunted by the second act love duet, all forty minutes of it.

There's plenty to love in the other acts as well. The photo above is of an important moment in Act 1: Tristan and Isolde are having a little discussion about their past history, which you've heard about already in Isolde's narration. O'Neill's hand is about to float up his chest to Isolde's, they will lean in toward each other, and they will almost kiss before the chorus of sailors interrupts them and Tristan jumps up to deal with the ship.

It is clear from Isolde's narration that they fell in love while she nursed him back to health, more or less over the body of her late fiancé Morold, whom Tristan killed in battle. And this little scene, so beautifully directed, is before they drink the potion that they think will kill them: they do not fall in love because they've drunk a love potion. They are already in love. Thinking that they will die, they are able to finally give voice to that love.

And act 3, with Tristan's drawn-out delirium and eventual death? Magnificently sung and acted by O'Neill.

The cast is outstanding, the conducting transcendent, the orchestra is playing magnificently. Go see it, particularly if you haven't seen it yet. (Friends whom I made sure saw it last Friday were basically OMG OMG OMG when it was over.) We are extremely lucky to have this production in town.

And here are a few words from Joshua Kosman's weekly newsletter (which I hope you're subscribing to):

Because of a confluence of personal and theatrical conflicts, I wasn’t able to get to last Saturday’s opening performance of Tristan and Isolde at the San Francisco Opera, or the second performance either. And now here I am, jumping up and down and trying to grab you by the lapels to tell you that you must see this production, and there are only two performances left in the run. That’s not right. [He goes on to explain why it's so fabulous.]

Yeah, I wish the run were longer myself, although the title roles make impossible demands on the singers, and they are humans with human limitations. But whatever, get your tickets for tomorrow night right here.