A foreign knight is prepared to stand trial in defence of Elsa of Brabant, who has been falsely accused of murdering her brother. His only condition: she must never ask him his true name or where he comes from. The mysterious saviour defeats her opponent, Friedrich von Telramund, is chosen as the new leader, and marries Elsa. But Telramund and his wife Ortrud seek to sow doubt in Elsa’s heart and urge her to ask the one question that will decide everything.Wagner’s Lohengrin, which premiered on 28 August 1850 in Weimar under the baton of Franz Liszt, draws inspiration from Germanic legends and quickly became one of the composer’s most popular works. Though the tale may appear almost fairytale-like, it grapples – at a time when the very foundations of democracy are being tested – with central questions that the directorial team led by Manuel Schmitt explores in Lohengrin: they view the story not only as a powerful warning about political manipulation, but also as an appeal to art and its audience to recognise their social responsibility.