On 22 June 2025, the Gran Teatre del Liceu premiered a new production of Antonín Dvořák’s Rusalka, conducted by Josep Pons. One of the masterpieces of the Czech operatic repertoire, the work returned to Barcelona in a co-production with the Teatro Real, the Dresdner Musikfestspiele, the Palau de les Arts Reina Sofía and the New National Theatre Tokyo, directed by Christof Loy.
Premiered in Prague in 1901, Rusalka draws on Slavic legends of water nymphs to tell the story of a creature who abandons her own world for love, embracing a tragic destiny. Dvořák’s score combines Central European symphonic tradition with Czech folk influences and extraordinary orchestral refinement.
Christof Loy’s production offered a psychological reading of the opera, moving away from conventional fairy-tale imagery to explore themes of desire, identity, isolation and the search for belonging.
The cast featured Asmik Grigorian in the title role, alongside Piotr Beczała, Okka von der Damerau, Aleksandros Stavrakakis and Karita Mattila, with the Gran Teatre del Liceu Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, prepared by Pablo Assante.
Josep Pons highlighted the score’s orchestral colours, transparency and lyrical flow while maintaining the dramatic intensity that lies at the heart of Dvořák’s masterpiece. Critics particularly praised the refinement of the musical direction, the orchestra’s performance and the close relationship established between pit and stage.
With Rusalka, Josep Pons added another landmark to his interpretation of the Central European repertoire and brought one of the Liceu’s most anticipated productions of the season to the stage.