From the very beginning, The Baltic Opera Festival has established itself as one of the largest open-air opera events in Europe. Renowned singer Tomasz Konieczny invites everyone to Gdańsk, Sopot and Gdynia for the upcoming edition of his original project, taking place July 02- 07.
The Fourth Edition of the Baltic Opera Festival 2026 – Concept and Programme
Baltic Opera Festival 2026: Romantic Rituals, Northern Spirits, and “Die Walküre” on the 150th Anniversary of “The Ring of the Nibelung.”
In the summer of 2026, for the fourth time, the Baltic Sea will become a stage for stories woven from Romantic fervor, myths, and the specters of the past. The Baltic Opera Festival returns with a program in which music summons spirits and the nocturnal landscapes of the North pulse with Wagnerian magic.
At the heart of the festival will be Richard Wagner’s Die Walküre – a masterpiece presented on the 150th anniversary of the first performance of The Ring of the Nibelung.
Two monumental performances will be staged on 2nd and 5th July 2026 at the Forest Opera in Sopot, where nature and theatre have for years engaged in a dialogue of extraordinary power.
The programme will also feature discoveries and returns to forgotten worlds. Polish Wedding by Joseph Beer will be staged on 3rd and 4th July 2026 at the Baltic Opera in Gdańsk. Suspended between nostalgia and the drama of history, Joseph Beer’s Polish Wedding will complete the festival’s Romantic profile.
With the youngest music lovers in mind, two performances of Richard Wagner’s Das Rheingold have been planned, presented with a specially prepared libretto in Polish – an invitation into a world of myths and legends, told in an accessible yet artistically ambitious form.
A special moment of the festival will be the The Museum of Man – Penderecki in memoriam on 6th July 2026, concert performed by Sinfonietta Cracovia – a moving tribute to the memory of Elżbieta Penderecka, an outstanding patron of musical life, member of the Honorary Committee of the Baltic Opera Festival, who passed away in October 2025. It will be an evening of reflection and remembrance, in which music becomes a prayer.
The festival will conclude with a recital by Anett Fritsch on 7th July 2026 – an intimate encounter with the extraordinary voice of Anett Fritsch, the poetry of Heinrich Heine, and a space where the sacred and art intertwine as one.
The programme will be complemented by a rich series of accompanying events: masterclasses for young singers and photography workshops, opening the Festival to a dialogue between generations and disciplines.
* Detailed information regarding the individual productions included in the planned Festival programme will be published by 25 March 2026.
The Baltic Opera Festival is organised by the Baltic Opera in Gdańsk.
The Festival’s partner is the Dal Segno Institute Association.
Baltic Opera Festival 2026 is co-financed by the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage.
At its core, the Baltic Opera Festival follows from my dream of making full use of the wonderful possibilities and world-class potential of the Forest Opera in Sopot, an extraordinary open-air venue with a history dating back to 1909.
Tomasz Konieczny studied acting at the Łódź Film School, followed by vocal studies at the Fryderyk Chopin Academy of Music in Warsaw and the Carl Maria von Weber Dresden University of Music under Professor Christian Elßner. He specialises in German music. His extensive career has taken him to the world’s top stages, including: Oper Leipzig, Metropolitan Opera, Deutsche Oper Berlin, Paris Opera, Carnegie Hall, Wiener Staatsoper, Teatro alla Scala, National Theatre of Japan in Tokyo, or Bayreuth Festival. In 2019, at the request of the leadership of the Wiener Staatsoper, he received the highest professional award in the German-speaking opera world: the title of the Österreichischer Kammersänger. In 2022, in recognition for his outstanding contribution to the development of Polish culture, he was presented with the Gold Gloria Artis Medal for Merits to Culture by the Minister of Culture and National Heritage of Poland.
