Messiah - Hudson Hall

Following the success of New York Times Critic’s Picks GIULIO CESARE (2025) and RODELINDA (2023), Hudson Hall announces the next two productions in its Handel on the Hudson series: DEIDAMIA in April/May 2027, and a staged production of MESSIAH in December 2027.

Composed in the same year, Messiah and Deidamia reveal the full range of Handel’s legacy. Messiah is a cultural touchstone, and Deidamia is one of Handel’s best kept secrets, rarely staged, and hiding in plain sight. Presented together in the same year at Hudson Hall, they offer a rare opportunity to move beyond a composer’s greatest hits and discover the deep cuts. With R. B. Schlather and Ruckus as expert guides, it promises to be an unforgettable adventure.

DEIDAMIA tickets go on sale to members Fall 2026 and to the public January 2027. MESSIAH tickets go on sale Spring 2027. Become a Member or Join the Producer’s Circle.

MESSIAH

• December, 2027. Dates and cast to be announced.
• Tickets on sale Spring, 2027.
• Oratorio by G. F. Handel, written 1741, premiered at Great Music Hall, Dublin, 1742
• Sung in English
• Direction & Concept by R. B. Schlather
• With early music band Ruckus

Timed to coincide with the December sunset through Hudson Hall’s historic, town hall-style windows, this untraditional staging of Messiah is conceived as a meditative ritual for the darkest days of the year. A shared space for reflecting on fate, suffering, and the enduring possibility of redemption, renewal and hope.

From director R. B. Schlather:

"Both Deidamia and Messiah remind us that Handel’s genius is not confined to the 18th century. These works have a transcendent relevance. They pulse with existential urgency, speaking directly to our contemporary experiences of uncertainty, identity, destiny, and hope. Nearly three centuries later, within the unique atmosphere of Hudson Hall, they invite us into a visceral, profoundly human encounter with the questions that define us: how we live, what we believe, and who we might become."

Hudson Hall is grateful for the generous support from the following for making the Handel on the Hudson opera series possible:

• The Karen & Robert Schlather Family Fund, and The Asbjorn Lunde Foundation.
• Producer’s Circle: Northlands Foundation, Serra and Glenn Butash, the Steven Hatfield and Patrick Riordan Charitable Fund, and the Tiger Baron Foundation.
• Additional support from the Howard & Sarah D. Solomon Foundation, the Joan Shafran & Rob Haimes Foundation, John “Jack” Roberts, Lise Suino, and the Raymond Han and Paul Kellogg Foundation.
• Preferred Hotel Partner of Hudson Hall: Pocketbook Hudson Hotel and Baths.

Hudson Hall’s programs are made possible with support from the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Governor and the New York State Legislature.