The Queen of Spades

One of Tchaikovsky's lesser known stories, 'The Queen of Spades' is a high-stakes story of love and gambling, based on a story by Pushkin. A penniless soldier learns a secret formula for winning at cards, and tries to win enough money to earn the love of a beautiful noblewoman. Stefan Herheim's visually spectacular production puts the composer himself at the centre of the story, exploring the parallels with his own life. The cast includes Eva-Maria Westbroek, Felicity Palmer and Aleksandrs Antonenko.