- It’s an epic love story with an amazing score, which resonates in an age of manipulation betweeen the sexes.
- If you enjoyed the smouldering sexuality of Wuthering Heights, you’ll love this tale of unrequited love.
- Our reviewer’s verdict: Yes, it’s in Russian, but anyone who’s messed up on a date night will relate to this.
Opera loves a romance gone wrong. And Eugene Onegin, on at the Sydney Opera House, is one of the genre’s most melancholy works.
Written by Tchaikovsky and a co-production of Opera Australia, The Royal Opera House, Covent Garden and Teatro Regio Torino, this production has an amazing pedigree. it ought to be the best – and it is.
But it’s really about life choices. We all make them – and sometimes we make the wrong ones. In this story, the results are devastating.
At its heart, Eugene Onegin is about a missed opportunity. Tatyana, a young woman full of romantic idealism, falls in love with the enigmatic Onegin and writes him a heartfelt letter. He rejects her, and not in a good way. He is terse, rude and completely unemotional.
He goes on to humiliate his best friend by flirting with his fiancée. Then he shoots his friend in a duel.
Certainly not a sensitive new-age guy.
Years later, everything has changed. After decades of emotional distance, Onegin meets Tatyana again. Now she is confident, composed, and married. This time, he’s the one in love. But it’s too late.
It’s a story that feels surprisingly familiar in today’s world of complicated relationships, emotional hesitation, and “right person, wrong time” moments.
What makes this production especially compelling is how it’s staged.
Rather than presenting the story as a distant period drama, director Kasper Holten uses memory and flashbacks to bring the characters’ inner worlds to life. On stage, past and present overlap – characters literally watch their younger selves make the decisions that shape their futures.
It’s a clever and emotionally powerful device that makes the opera feel less like history, and more like a reflection of our own lives.
Set against a striking design by Mia Stensgaard, the stage becomes a living memory—filled with projections that build layer upon layer of the characters’ past.
And then there’s the music. Tchaikovsky’s score is sweeping, lyrical, and deeply expressive – capturing everything from the intensity of first love to the quiet ache of regret.
Under the direction of internationally acclaimed conductor Anna Skryleva (making her Australian debut), the Opera Australia Orchestra brings every emotional nuance to life. We loved it.
Cast to Watch
This production brings together an impressive mix of international and Australian talent:
- Lauren Fagan as Tatyana is powerful and strong.
- Andrei Bondarenko as Eugene Onegin is suitably confused. I’ll be surprised if you sympathise with his plight.
- Nicholas Jones as Lensky – OMG he spends 40 minutes lying dead on the stage while the cast ignores him. it’s creepy.
- Keeley Tennyson as Young Taytana is incredibly sensual
- Elias wilson as Monsieur Triquet is hilarious
Why It’s Worth Seeing
You don’t need to be an opera expert to connect with Eugene Onegin. This isn’t about complicated plots or hard-to-follow storylines—it’s about emotions we all understand:
- falling in love
- being rejected
- making mistakes
- and wondering what could have been
It’s the kind of story that lingers long after you leave the theatre.
Your Visit
What: Eugene Onegin
Where: Joan Sutherland Theatre, Sydney Opera House
When: 17–28 March (evenings + one matinee)
Running time: Approx. 2 hours 50 minutes (including interval)
Language: Russian with English subtitles
Tickets: From $79
Book here: www.opera.org.au or call (02) 9318 8200
Verdict
If you’re after a Sydney night out that’s more than just entertainment, Eugene Onegin delivers something deeper—a moving reminder that timing matters, choices have consequences, and sometimes love comes back… but just a little too late.
Heather Fairbairn’s sets are stark and arresting.
But we do have one question: Lensky’s body (played by Nicholas Jones in real life and death) was on stage for 40 minutes! It was surreal as the story developed around a corpse. I’m sure it was supposed to remind us of the past…but somehow it was hard to stop your eyes going to the body that no-one was acknowledging.
