This season, the Teatro Real will be hosting the tragic opera by Giuseppe Verdi, with the libretto by Francesco Maria Piave and Arrigo Boito and based on the play of the same name by Antonio García Gutiérrez. It is a deeply humane drama about redemption, fatherhood and the price of power, which can be seen on 16, 19, 20, 23, 26, 27, 29, and 30 December and 2, 3, 8 and 9 January.
This is an impressive stage production directed by Pierre Audi, with stage design by Anish Kapoor, one of the most renowned visual artists on the international scene. Nicola Luisotti will conduct a cast headed by Ludovic Tézier and Daniel Luis de Vicente in the title role, alongside Hrachuhí Bassénz, Mané Galoyan, John Relyea, Alexander Vinogradov, Gianluca Buratto, Francesco Meli, Piero Pretti, Germán Enrique Alcántara and Simón Orfila, among others. The production is in Italian with English and Spanish subtitles.
The opera takes the audience to turbulent Genoa in medieval times, where the corsair Simon Boccanegra is elected Doge of the city-state in the midst of conspiracies and political clashes. His rise to power occurs despite the opposition of Jacopo Fiesco, his greatest enemy, with whom he shares a bond marked by sorrow: both were united by Maria, Fiesco’s daughter and Boccanegra’s lover. The disappearance of Amelia, the daughter born of that relationship, adds to this tragedy, as her whereabouts are unknown.
The story jumps 25 years to show Amelia’s unexpected return to Genoa as a young woman caught in the middle of a power struggle that threatens to destroy everything. Her arrival reopens old wounds and triggers a series of revelations that bring the two old adversaries against each other.
Artistic File:
- Musical Conductors - Nicola Luisotti and Daniel Montané (Jan - 9)
- Stage Director - Pierre Audi
- Stage Design - Anish Kapoor
- Wardrobe - Wojciech Dziedzic
- Lighting - Jean Kalman
- Choirmaster - José Luis Basso
- Orchestra - Teatro Real Resident Orchestra and Choir
Cast:
- Simon Boccanegra - Ludovic Tézier (Dec - 16, 20, 23, 27, 30 and Jan - 03, 08) and Daniel Luis de Vicente (Dec - 19, 26, 29 and Jan - 02, 09)
- Amelia Grimaldi - Hrachuhí Bassénz (Dec - 16, 20, 23, 27, 30 and Jan - 03, 08) and Mané Galoyan (Dec - 19, 26, 29 and Jan - 02, 09)
- Jacopo Fiesco - John Relyea (Dec - 16, 20, 23, 27 and Jan - 03), Alexander Vinogradov (Dec - 19, 26, 29 and Jan - 02, 09) and Gianluca Buratto (Dec - 30 and Jan - 08)
- Gabriele Adorno - Francesco Meli (Dec - 16, 20, 23, 27, 30 and Jan - 03, 08) and Piero Pretti (Dec - 19, 26, 29 and Jan - 02, 09)
- Paolo Albiani - Germán Enrique Alcántara (Dec - 16, 20, 23, 27, 30 and Jan - 03, 08) and Simón Orfila (Dec - 19, 26, 29 and Jan - 02, 09)
- Pietro - David Lagares (Dec - 16, 19, 20, 23, 26, 27, 29, 30 and Jan - 02, 03, 08, 09)
- Captain of the Crossbowmen - Fabián Lara (Dec - 16, 19, 20, 23, 26, 27, 29, 30 and Jan - 02, 03, 08, 09)
- Amelia’s Maid - Cassandre Berthon (Dec - 16, 19, 20, 23, 26, 27, 29, 30 and Jan - 02, 03, 08, 09)
Programme:
- Opera in a Prologue and Three Acts
- Music by Giuseppe Verdi (1813-1901)
- Libretto by Francesco Maria Piave and Arrigo Boito, (1881 version), based on the play of the same name (1843) by Antonio García Gutiérrez
- New production by the Teatro Real, in co-production with the New National Theatre Tokyo and the Finnish National Opera and Ballet in Helsinki.
- Premièred at the La Fenice Theatre in Venice on 12 March 1857
- Premièred at the Teatro Real on 7 January 1861
Language: Italian with English and Spanish subtitles
Image Credits: Simon Boccanegra © Ilkka Saastamoinen FNOB
