Grab your tickets for a breath taking performance of Samson et Dalila at London's beautiful Royal Opera House
SeokJong Baek and Aigul Akhmetshina star as the legendary lovers in Richard Jones’ vivid production, praised for its explosive energy and wild colour. Alexander Soddy conducts Camille Saint-Saëns’ Samson et Dalila, a thrilling opera packed with seductive melodies, powerful choruses and a jaw-dropping finale in the famous Bacchanale.
Samson et Dalila details:
- Dates: 13th May – 3rd June 2026
- Age: Parental guidance recommended
- Duration: 2hr 40min. including one interval
- Venue: Royal Opera House, Bow St, London, UK, WC2E 9DD
About Samson et Dalila
At the heart of the opera is Dalila’s iconic aria, ‘Mon cœur s’ouvre à ta voix’ (Softly awakes my heart). With its lush, soaring melody, Dalila lures Samson into revealing the secret of his strength—his long hair. The aria’s beauty masks the violence that follows: betrayal, imprisonment and Samson’s brutal blinding at the hands of the Philistines.
Although Saint-Saëns is best known for The Carnival of the Animals and his Organ Symphony, Samson et Dalila stands as one of his most enduring achievements. Born in Paris in 1835, the child prodigy originally conceived the work as an oratorio before transforming it into an opera, a hybrid form that sits between concert work and staged drama. Encouraged by Franz Liszt, Saint-Saëns completed the score following a pivotal discussion after attending Wagner’s Das Rheingold, conducted by Liszt himself.
The biblical tale of Samson and Delilah, drawn from the Old Testament Book of Judges, has inspired artists for centuries—from Rubens’ famous painting to Handel’s oratorio Samson and countless films. Samson’s superhuman strength, lost when Delilah cuts his hair, remains one of the Bible’s most enduring legends.
The opera’s Bacchanale, in which the Philistines worship their god Dagon, is a spectacular orchestral showpiece. The music surges into a dizzying frenzy, originally intended to climax in an all-out orgy. In Richard Jones’ staging, the scene becomes a riot of colour and movement: a towering blue sculpture rolls onstage, the Royal Opera Chorus gleams in gold costumes and jewellery, and dancers erupt into a thunderous, electrifying celebration.