With Akhnaten, minimal-music pioneer Philip Glass created a monument to one of the most enigmatic figures in world history. In staging the story of the pharaoh’s rise and fall, Barrie Kosky offers us a vision rich in visuals and movement.
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Thebes, around 1300 BCE: Amenhotep III has died. His son, Amenhotep IV, who later takes the name Akhnaten, is crowned pharaoh. The young pharaoh heralds the beginning of a new era: after destroying the temple of Amun, principal god of the polytheistic religion, he declares the sun god Aten to be the sole deity. But Akhnaten’s reign will not last. The Amun priesthood restores the old order, and Akhnaten, founder of the first known monotheistic religion, is overthrown.
In his stage production, Barrie Kosky dispenses with Egyptian iconography. Instead, we encounter a white stage environment, abstract visuals, and ritualized movement sequences, embedding Philip Glass’s hypnotic music in a kind of visual mantra.
Additional information
Philip Glass
Opera in three acts [1984]
Libretto by Philip Glass in collaboration with Shalom Goldman, Robert Israel, Richard Riddell, and Jerome Robbins
In the repertoire since March 15, 2025
- Recommended for grades 9 and up
- Egyptian, Akkadian, Hebrew, English, and German
- 3 hours, including intermission
