Norma
Musiktheater an der Wien
Norma is a woman torn between two systems. As a chaste druid priestess, she decides on war and peace in an occupied land; secretly, she’s the lover of Roman commander Pollione and mother of his two children. Her double life unravels when Pollione plans to leave her for the younger priestess Adalgisa. Caught between love and vengeance, faith and reason, tradition and empire, Norma nearly kills her children—before choosing another, equally radical path. Vincenzo Bellini’s 1831 opera is a masterpiece of Italian Romanticism. The role of Norma, with its emotional and vocal range from bel canto to raw outcry, is iconic. Director Vasily Barkhatov sets the tragedy amid political upheaval, where old idols are replaced by new. Star soprano Asmik Grigorian debuts in the title role. Adalgisa is sung by Aigul Akhmetshina.
Summary
Norma (2025) brings Vincenzo Bellini’s celebrated 1831 opera to the screen in a visually charged production directed by Vasily Barkhatov. Set in a land under Roman occupation, the film follows Norma, a druid priestess whose public role places her at the center of a religious and political struggle. Revered as a spiritual authority, she must help determine whether her people should seek peace or rise against the empire. Yet behind her austere image, Norma has been living a secret life that directly conflicts with her vows and responsibilities. Norma is privately involved with Pollione, the Roman commander, and together they have two children. Their relationship has endured in the shadows, but Pollione’s attention has shifted to Adalgisa, a younger priestess whose innocence and devotion place her in the middle of the emotional and ideological conflict. As Pollione’s plans threaten to expose Norma’s hidden life, the priestess is forced to confront betrayal, jealousy, and the consequences of choices made long before the story begins. At the center of the film is Norma herself, portrayed by soprano Asmik Grigorian in her debut in the title role. She is neither simply a wronged lover nor an infallible religious leader, but a deeply divided woman struggling to reconcile her private desires with her public duty. Aigul Akhmetshina’s Adalgisa serves as both a foil and a possible source of empathy, while Pollione embodies the political power and personal selfishness of the occupying Roman order. Barkhatov frames the opera as a tragedy of social transformation, placing its intimate passions against a backdrop of political upheaval and changing beliefs. Old gods and institutions are losing their authority, while new systems promise order at a human cost. The film explores the tension between faith and reason, tradition and empire, loyalty and freedom, and the destructive pull of love when it becomes entangled with power. Bellini’s demanding bel canto score gives those conflicts their fullest expression, moving from ceremonial grandeur to startling emotional rawness as Norma’s carefully controlled world begins to collapse.
