- Opera Australia has opened a nine-week season of Turandot with a brand new production.
- Director Ann Yee has boldly broken the mould and gone for an almost-black and white set which showcases the story and the cast brilliantly.
- On until March 27, we recommend this for opera lovers and newbies.
Turandot turns 100 this year. Premiered in 1926, it was Giacomo Puccini’s final opera, left unfinished at his death and completed by Franco Alfano. Its most famous aria, Nessun Dorma, could reasonably be described as opera’s biggest hit — helped along by Luciano Pavarotti and the 1990 FIFA World Cup.
Opera Australia’s latest production brings this story up to date. And it is a remarkably bold and brilliantly staged story.
This is no boy-meets-girl tale — though it is ultimately a story of love conquering just about all.
Turandot is a princess tortured by the fate of an ancestor who was brutalised and killed by barbarian conquerer five generations before. As a result, she resolves never to fall in love. Any suitor who seeks her hand must answer three riddles; failure means death at the hands of her executioner.
These aren’t the riddles you find in party crackers. In this production, thirteen suitors have already been beheaded this year when young Calaf arrives and does the unthinkable: he bangs the gong that signals his intention to try for Turandot’s hand. Against all odds, Calaf answers all three riddles correctly. But when Turandot recoils from the prospect of marriage, he offers her a way out — if she can discover his name by dawn, he will relinquish his claim – and his life.
I’ll leave the rest to the opera, but this has a surprisingly happy ending — not the usual operatic massacre.
What makes this 2026 production at the Sydney Opera House so compelling is how clearly that story is told. Director and choreographer Ann Yee, making her Australian debut as a director, deliberately breaks away from the overtly extravagant and colourful Chinese sets of traditional stagings. Instead, she places the action in an Orwellian world of bleak grey and black. Monumental yet stark sets, immersive visuals, enthralling choreography and a big cast combine to create a world that feels both timeless and disturbingly modern.
Towering behind the performers is a giant, Avatar-like projection of the terrifying Princess Turandot — remote, omnipresent and emotionally unreachable. The video design comes from Andrew Thomas Huang, the Chinese-American artist whose work spans sculpture, film and music videos for artists including Björk, Charli XCX and FKA twigs. His contribution gives the production a striking visual language that amplifies, rather than distracts from, the drama.
With spectacle pared back and focus sharpened, attention is drawn squarely to the performers and to a story that is often lost in operatic translation. Taking on the title role are two of Australia’s most dramatic sopranos: Rebecca Nash, returning home after a long-awaited stint at The Metropolitan Opera in New York, followed later in the season by Anna-Louise Cole, fresh from her critically acclaimed performances in The Ring Cycle.
South Korean tenor Young Woo Kim, who shone as Don José in Carmen last winter, returns to make his role debut as Calaf. He is excellent. He shares the role across the nine-week season with Diego Torre and Rosario La Spina.
Turandot’s ancestor is Princess Lou-Ling is played by dancer Hoyori Maruo. Her subtle movements and silent but powerful stage presence is an important part of this production.
Opera Australia’s Chorus, Children’s Chorus and dancers create the largest choral forces Puccini ever wrote for.
Turandot is atmospheric, and the music is deeply moving. There are traditional Chinese musical elements, featuring 13 tuned Chinese gongs alongside percussion instruments such as tubular bells and even an on-stage wood block, lending the opera its distinctive sonic power.
Although Puccini famously never finished Turandot, dying two years before its premiere, it is now regarded as one of his greatest works and remains a beloved staple of the repertoire.
But Yee drills down into Turandot like a psychiatrist, and reveals her relationship with ancestry, trauma and power.
Fact File
- What: Turandot by Giacomo Puccini
- Where: Sydney Opera House, Joan Sutherland Theatre
- When: 15 January – 27 March 2026
- Running time: Approximately 2 hours 20 minutes (including interval)
- Tickets: From around $79
- Bookings: Sydney Opera House and Opera Australia
- Website: www.sydneyoperahouse.com
