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The Merry Widow Tickets

London Coliseum

A fun comedy of love and romance, The Merry Widow by Franz Lehár is a three-act operetta based on the comic play L'attaché d'ambassade (The Embassy Attaché) by Henri Meilhac. Director Max Webster makes his ENO debut with this production in a limited run at the London Coliseum.

Following its premiere in Vienna in 1905, the operetta The Merry Widow was praised as a huge success and went on to be adapted in English, German and French. After that, a Broadway run received much acclaim and ran for 416 performances. Audiences cannot resist this charming story of the spunky widow Hanna and the womanising Danilo, and the attempts to matchmake them.

The wealthy, young Hanna is the subject of a matchmaking attempt focused on keeping her wealth in the country, but she instead shows interest in somebody else. Danilo and Hanna loved each other before she was married off and the Grand Duke attempts to reignite that flame, but Danilo is stubborn and refuses. The two embark on a merry game of playful deception that nearly ends in catastrophe, but all ends happily just in the nick of time.

Kristiina Poska and Martin Fitzpatrick conduct this production, which is directed by Max Webster (The Lorax) and choreographed by Stephen Mear, featuring design by Esther Bialas, Bruno Poet and Stephen Mear. The cast features Sarah Tynan has Hanna and Nathan Gunn as Danilo, as well as Andrew Shore, Robert Murray, Rhian Lois, Nicholas Lester and Jamie MacDougall.

This endearing love story has broad appeal with plenty of comedic moments, taking place at extravagant parties marked with dancing and indulgence. Translated into English, the English National Opera strive to make opera appealing to younger audiences, and this is a great choice that guarantees loads of fun. The Merry Widow plays at the West End's London Coliseum from 1 March to 13 April 2019.

Sorry this show closed 13 April 2019, we recommend these similar productions.

Rigoletto
La Boheme
Performance dates:
12 Apr 2019 - 13 Apr 2019
Running time:
2 hours and 30 minutes including an interval.
Age recommendation:
No under 5's
Audience Notes:
Those who want to explore opera with a production that’s not too serious or lengthy will enjoy this update from a director well-known for his theatre work.

The Merry Widow Reviews

4.0
50 Reviews
  • 5 Stars40%
  • 4 Stars36%
  • 3 Stars10%
  • 2 Stars8%
  • 1 Stars6%

User Reviews

Great show. Large cast. Colourful sets and costumes. Wonderful singing voices. Our only complaint was that we were not allowed in to the theatre until 7.25 due to scenery not being in place and had to wait outside in a room which got hotter and hot Read more

Performance date: 22 March 2019

Fantastic orchestra and singing. Very good acting. I did not like the choreography of the men's septet and I prefer more traditional lyrics -- with the usual lyrics, it would have been almost perfect. I really appreciate what ENO is doing to encoura Read more

Performance date: 27 March 2019

Loved the music, beautifully sung and played; lovely sets and costumes; but could have done without some of the distracting farce.

Performance date: 15 March 2019
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