Royal Opera House: Salome

An opera which with its biblical, erotic and murderous themes shocked audiences when it was first performed in 1905. It depicts Salome, stepdaughter of Herod, a teenage girl whose sexual awakening leads to an obsession with John the Baptist, held prisoner by Herod. She demands his head on a platter after he rejected her. The opera is known for its final shocking scene where Salome makes love to the severed head of John the Baptist and also for the dance of the seven veils, which McVicar presents in this production as a striking piece of psychological staging.