Dialogues of the Carmelites

About

Dialogues des Carmélites is a three-act French opera based on the story by author Georges Bernanos, with a libretto by Francis Poulenc. Based on true events, it tells the story of 16 Carmelite nuns who were decapitated during the French Revolution. Blanche de la Force, a highborn woman fearing the Revolution, unwittingly puts herself in the line of fire when she joins the Carmelite order. Upon being banished from their convent, the nuns choose to suffer martyrdom than denounce their belief system. The opera has been touted by many as one of the greatest works of the 20th century.