La Traviata
Royal Opera House
4/5 based on 2 reviews (read reviews)- Opens: Thursday, 8 January 2026 -
Booking until: Tuesday, 17 February 2026 - Running time: 3hr. Incl. 2 intervals.
La Traviata description
Alfredo and Violetta's powerful love story takes to the stage in La Traviata.
Experience Verdi's sublime music for yourself as the beloved plot unfolds. Lavish parties are the name of the game for Parisian courtesan Violetta, who has been ill but now returns to public life. When she meets handsome Alfredo Germont, they fall deeply in love. Violetta reluctantly leaves the glittering lights of Paris to follow her lover to the countryside, where Alfredo's dad Giorgio eventually turns up. He persuades Violetta to give Alfredo up and save the family's reputation, and she agrees. Alfredo follows Violetta to Paris, where she's being taken care of by her old protector, Baron Douphol. Can Alfredo win her back?
La Traviata literally means 'she who strays from the path'. The plot is inspired by the famous real-life Parisian courtesan Marie Duplessis, heroine of Alexandre Dumas's play and novel La Dame aux camélias. Originally not making much of an impact when first staged in Venice during 1853, Verdi's revised version proved a smash hit just a year later. Now it is the world's most frequently-performed opera, and Violetta's role is a hot favourite with soprano singers around the globe.
The gorgeous score includes Violetta's "Could it be him" and "I must always be free", and you'll recognise the melody of the famous "Brindisi chorus", aka The drinking song, whether you're already an opera fan or not.
An excellent introduction for newcomers to the genre, this time around Antonello Manacorda and Giacomo Sagripanti conduct three stellar casts, including the dream team Ermonela Jaho, Pretty Yende and Rachel Willis-Sørensen. The director is the legendary Richard Eyre, who has created a seductively grand production to showcase the sheer beauty of Verdi's masterpiece. Music by Giuseppe Verdi and Libretto
by Francesco Maria Piave, Design by Bob Crowley, Lighting design from Jean Kalman and Movement direction by Jane Gibson completes the picture to create an opera not to be missed.
Sung in Italian with English surtitles, La Traviata tickets are set to sell out fast.
Playing at Royal Opera House
Age restrictions
Ages 5+. Children under 5 are not permitted into the theatre. Children over age five must have their own ticket and sit next to an accompanying adult.
Important information
Sung in Italian with English surtitles. Captions and translations in English will be displayed on screens above the stage and around the auditorium.