"Ariadne auf Naxos playfully combines two very different art forms: tragic opera and romantic farce. The result is a richly textured work that examines the role of art in society, and contrasts true love with cheerful promiscuity. Richard Strauss originally conceived Ariadne auf Naxos as part of a large-scale arrangement of Molière's play Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme. After initial performances in 1912, he abandoned the material from Molière and wrote a new operatic Prologue. The second version of Ariadne auf Naxos had its premiere in 1916." More ...