“Falstaff”, Verdi’s last opera, blends comedy and melancholy in a manner rarely found in an opera before or after it. With the complex interplay of many characters, it presents a challenge to every director. In this production from the Teatro Filarmonico di Verona, Oscar- and Golden Globe-nominated film director Luca Guadagnino (“I am Love”) finds an ideal solution by bringing out the individuality of each figure through unmistakable traits. The performance features a strong cast of chiefly young Italian musicians, with the Orchestra dell’Arena di Verona under the spirited direction of Daniele Rustioni.
Tosca
French film and stage director Christophe Honoré presents Puccini’s verismo masterpiece as an opera about opera and brings the legendary prima donna Catherine Malfitano back on stage. Young soprano Angel Blue gives a highly acclaimed debut as Floria Tosca with a “warm and golden yet immensly powerful voice” (New York Times). At her side as Cavaradossi sings Joseph Calleja, one of the top tenors of his generation. “Puccini’s opera triumphed in Aix-en-Provence under the baton of Daniele Rustioni” (Le Monde).
La Traviata
Verdi’s La traviata at the Chorégies d’Orange Festival on the open air stage of the ancient Roman Théâtre has all ingredients for a big success: a popular title, renowned artists with luxury voices, a tasteful staging and a great show in a stunning ambience – and it lived up to the expectations: “We have seen many La traviatas, and heard, but this one will rest in our memories” echoed the press after the first night. Placido Domingo in the role of Giorgio Germont is celebrating a triumphal return to the Festival after nearly four decades of absence. Albanian soprano Ermonela Jaho, immediately elevated to “the queen of the Chorégies”, is a stunning Violetta at eye level with the great interpreters of this role, tenor Francesco Meli as a vibrant Alfredo completes the supreme cast.
Rossini Opera Festival 2017: La pietra del paragone
Il Signor Bruschino
Rossini’s one-act opera Il Signor Bruschino was premiered at the Teatro di San Moisè in Venice in 1813. The chilly reception it was given – it was performed only once – is difficult to understand today, considering its bubbly, exhilarating music. As performed at the Rossini Opera Festival in Pesaro, the work is a gem, and the New York Times cheered the “clever production” conceived by the young Florentine theater collective Teatro Sotteraneo, one of the most innovative experimental groups in Italy.