Antonín Dvořák's ardent melodiousness, both tender and dramatically extreme, his masterly use of musical motifs and full‑blooded orchestral colour, together with Jaroslav Kvapil's libretto — reminiscent of Erben’s simple yet powerfully evocative ballads — make Rusalka a work of sheer rapturous beauty, touching a chord with audiences of all ages.
Rusalka is a lyrical fairy tale to a libretto by Jaroslav Kvapil, a moving story rich in poetry and drama. It tells of the unhappy Rusalka, a Water Nymph, who falls in love with a prince. Longing to become human so that her love may be fulfilled, she endures the torment of becoming mute and accepts the threat of a curse. When her beloved later abandons her, she refuses to reclaim her freedom through his death.
Act I begins in a meadow by a moonlit lake. The Water‑Gnome, ruler of the underwater realm, is teased by three Wood‑Sprites who dance and sing at the water’s edge. His daughter Rusalka confesses that she has fallen in love with a mortal prince she has seen swimming and hunting by the lake. She tells her father how she longs to become human so she may be with him. The Water‑Gnome, anxious for her safety and distrustful of the human world, warns her against making such an impulsive wish, reminding her that humans can be sinful. Nevertheless, he directs her to the sea‑witch Jezibaba, who lives at the edge of the lake.
Rusalka seeks out Jezibaba and begs to be transformed into a human. Like the Water‑Gnome, Jezibaba warns her to consider her request carefully. If the Prince betrays her, both she and the Prince will be damned for eternity, and Rusalka will lose her voice as part of the transformation. Believing in the Prince’s love, Rusalka accepts the terms and drinks the potion Jezibaba prepares.
At dawn, the Prince and his companions are hunting near the lake in pursuit of a white doe. When the doe suddenly vanishes, the Prince sends his companions away so he may remain alone. He encounters the now‑human Rusalka and is immediately enchanted by her beauty despite her silence. He brings her back to his castle, while the Water‑Gnome and her sisters weep in despair.
Act II
By a pond in the Prince’s garden, a kitchen‑boy and a Gamekeeper discuss the Prince’s intention to marry a mute girl. Suspicious of her origins, they joke that she may be a witch and predict that the Prince will soon tire of her. They also note that he has started to admire a beautiful foreign princess.
The Prince struggles to understand why Rusalka seems cold to his touch, but she cannot explain. The Foreign Princess arrives and urges him not to neglect his guests. Aware that Rusalka cannot answer her, she mocks her silence and, out of jealousy, curses the couple. Rusalka leaves to dress for the ball while the Prince turns his attention to the Foreign Princess.
At the pond, the Water‑Gnome appears and laments his daughter’s fate — sacrificed for a love that has betrayed her. Rusalka suddenly flees from the castle in tears and begs her father to take her back into the water. She confesses that humans are not faithful. The Prince and the Foreign Princess arrive in the garden, openly in love. Rusalka tries to embrace the Prince, but he recoils, saying that her touch chills him. The Water‑Gnome pulls his heartbroken daughter beneath the water. Once she is gone, the Foreign Princess rejects the Prince’s advances and curses him to hell.
Act III
At the lake, Jezibaba appears and taunts Rusalka for the Prince’s faithlessness. Eventually she softens and tells Rusalka there is one way to redeem herself: she must kill the Prince who betrayed her. Rusalka refuses, declaring she would rather he be happy than save herself. Cursed for eternity, she can no longer return to her former life as a water nymph. Instead, she must lure humans to their deaths at night. Her sisters reject her, and Rusalka is condemned to dwell in the darkest depths of the lake during the day.
The Gamekeeper and the kitchen‑boy seek out Jezibaba, wanting to know whether the Prince has been bewitched and wronged by Rusalka. Outraged by the accusation, the Water‑Gnome rises from the water and recounts how the Prince betrayed her love.
Late at night, the Prince returns to the lake in pursuit of the white doe. Sensing Rusalka’s presence, he calls out to her. When she appears, she asks him why he betrayed her. He falls at her feet begging forgiveness and asks for a kiss. Knowing she is now a spirit of death, Rusalka warns him that her kiss will kill him. The Prince accepts his fate, declaring he would rather die by her kiss than live without her.
Rusalka kisses him one final time. He dies in her arms, and she gently thanks him for allowing her to experience human love. She prays that God may care for his soul before she returns to her eternal prison in the depths of the lake. | 
