Using the example of the impossible love between the Jew Samson and the Philistine Dalila, Camille Saint-Saëns shows the deadly conflict between two hostile cultures and religions.

Staged by the Flanders Opera Company in Antwerp in 2009, Saint-Saëns’ opera Samson et Dalila is re-located in this production to the contemporary Middle East. The two directors, Israeli Omri Nitzan and Palestinian Amir Nizar Zuabi, explore the tensions between different nations and religions, and the complex relationship between the oppressors and the oppressed. ‘In our approach to this opera we tried to move away from the quasi-biblical interpretation, and to place the story in today’s world to explain its political aspects better’, say the two directors. ‘Acts of terror by a state will lead to acts of terror against a state, which in turn will lead to more terror by the state and this completes the vicious circle.’

Performed by the Symphonic Orchestra and Choir of Vlaamse Opera Antwerp/Gent under the baton of Czech conductor Tomáš Netopil, Samson is sung by the young German tenor Torsten Kerl and Dalila by the Russian mezzo-soprano Marianna Tarasova. The kaleidoscopic colours of the music are brought out with sensitivity and lyricism by the orchestra and singers, unfolding the dramatic story in all its tragic beauty.

Samson and Dalila promises to be a production that no serious opera connoisseur would want to miss.

Directors: Omri Nitzan and Amir Nizar Zuabi

Recorded live at the Vlaamse Opera Antwerpen/Gent, 2009

Bonus: The Making of Samson et Dalila, including interviews with the production team and Torsten Kerl

Picture format: NTSC - 16:9
Sounds formats: PCM Stereo, Dolby Digital 5.1, DTS 5.1
Region code: 0
Booklet notes: English, German, French
Subtitles: French, English, German, Dutch
Running time: 122 mins (+ Bonus 16 mins)