20:00, Fri 7th – Sat 8th November 2025 at Fitzwilliam College Auditorium
Michaelmas Week 4

Sāvitrī is an opera by Gustav Holst, adapted from the original setting of Sāvitrī and Satyavān in the Mahabharata. It follows the titular character, a princess unmatched in beauty and intellect, as she sets out alone to find a suitable husband. Finding a simple carpenter in the woods, she is immediately taken with his humility and modest way of life - and upon speaking to him, she finds he is none other than Satyavān, the prince of a neighbouring kingdom, exiled by a violent coup. Admiring his strength of character, she resolves to marry him at once, but all is not well for the happy couple. News of her intentions to marry Satyavān is met with a chilling prophecy from Nāradha, news-carrier of the Gods. He shares that if Sāvitrī marries Satyavān, their bliss will last but one year, until Yama (Death) comes for Satyavān. Undeterred, though deeply troubled by this news, Sāvitrī insists upon marrying her lover. Our story begins as the year comes to a close, when Yama comes calling for his price. As the prophecy looms, will Sāvitrī be able to outsmart such an archaic force to keep her lover alive, or will she be helpless to fate?

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