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| | Arts Calendar / October 9 / Opera |
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 Opera in one act by Gioacchino Rossini. 165 min (with one interval). Libretto by Luigi Balocchi based on the novel "Corinne, ou L'Italie" by Germaine de Staël. Conductor: Tugan Sokhiev. Stage Director: Damiano Michieletto. Sung in Italian. A group of aristocratic travellers are stranded together on the way to Reims, where they’re heading to celebrate the coronation of King Charles X. Fortunately, the unlikely bunch create plenty of their own entertainment. This is an ensemble opera, which means it’s a big cast with lots of important roles. We could introduce them all, but it gets confusing! There’s a hostess, some eligible young widows, a poetess, a multinational assortment of army and navy officers, a doctor, a scholar and of course, the help: a housekeeper, courier and valet. There’s not much plot, but there’s plenty of intrigue about who is in love with who, some sentimental moments and a whole lot of comedy. No one heard this opera between 1825 and 1984, when famous conductor Claudio Abbado resurrected it for a Deutsche Grammophon recording. So there isn’t a famous aria, but there’s a brilliant ensemble written for 14 voices (!) that you can listen out for. In fact, every number in the opera is a show-stopper. It’s a musical feast.
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