Sweet compassion instead of ecstatic love: Frank Martin’s Le vin herbé offers a new interpretation of the tale of Tristan and Iseult, which goes beyond Wagnerian pathos. Tom Randle and Caitlin Hulcup embody the fatal lovers in the new production by Welsh National Opera.
A magic potion becomes both a blessing and a curse for two young people. Tristan is about to bring the Irish princess Iseult to Cornwall where she is to marry his uncle, King Mark. A love potion has been prepared to get the arranged marriage off to a happy start. But Brangien, Iseult’s chambermaid, pours it into the goblets of her mistress and the Cornish knight. The two lovers are not capable of hiding their feelings, even if their love means treason to the crown.
