{"product_id":"handel-theodora-3","title":"Handel: Theodora","description":"The oratorio Theodora was first performed at the Covent Garden Theatre on 16 March 1750 and clearly took Londoners by surprise. Handel had, after all, made a one-hundred-and-eighty-degree turn in his choice of subject. The grandiose episodes of the Old Testament, the glorious struggles of Solomon, Saul, or Judas Maccabaeus are no more: the young martyr Theodora leads neither a community nor troops into battle. In a work far removed from the grand spectacle of biblical oratorios, Handel invites us to witness the poignant tale of a personal drama, a drama of the beginnings of Christianity fuelled by conscience, faith, and the heartbreak that they cause.","brand":"Ricercar","offers":[{"title":"CD","offer_id":51838379000088,"sku":"5400439004856","price":39.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0687\/4346\/3192\/files\/4488836-3523226.jpg?v=1777476418","url":"https:\/\/hbdirect.com\/products\/handel-theodora-3","provider":"HBDirect","version":"1.0","type":"link"}