Opera's Most Shocking Story Returns

Returning as part of San Francisco Opera's 2025/26 season is Richard Strauss' brutal tale of familial conflict. Set in the early days after the Trojan War, sex and bloody revenge are the order of the day, when a young princess sets out to make her treacherous mother pay for the murder of her father. A production by Keith Warner, expect a stunning re-telling that celebrates Strauss' expressionist score that elevates this Greek tragedy to thrilling heights.

What Is The Story?

Premiering in 1909 to shocked audiences, Elektra is Richard Strauss' operatic masterpiece, with a libretto by Hugo von Hofmannsthal is full of shocks and paints a disturbing canvas into the ultimate dysfunctional family. Taken from Homer's Illiad, King Agamemnon's card was always marked by his wife Klytamnestra, when he sacrificed their older daughter to the gods, 10 years ago for a favorable wind to sail to war on Troy.

Embittered by grief, Klytamnestra takes a lover in her husband's long absence, much to the disgust of her daughter Elektra. However, revenge is a dish best-served cold, as Klytamnestra waits until her husband's return with false happiness - only to murder him in his bath. Enraged, Elektra embarks on a journey of cold and icy revenge - made all the more possible with the return of her brother Orestes.