Adaneth - Arts & Literature

Composer: Giuseppe Verdi Librettist: Francesco Maria Piave Premiere: 22 November 1862, St Petersburg (Imperial Bolshoi Theatre) Language: Italian Libretto: https://www.opera-arias.com/verdi/la-forza-del-destino/libretto/ Translation: English subtitles La Forza del Destino (The Power of Fate, often translated The Force of Destiny) is an Italian opera by Giuseppe Verdi. The libretto was written by Francesco Maria Piave based on a Spanish drama, Don Álvaro o la fuerza del sino (1835), by Ángel de Saavedra, 3rd Duke of Rivas, with a scene adapted from Friedrich Schiller's Wallensteins Lager (Wallenstein's Camp). It was first performed in the Bolshoi Kamenny Theatre of Saint Petersburg, Russia, on 29 November 1862 O.S. (N.S. 10 November). La forza del destino is frequently performed, and there have been a number of complete recordings. In addition, the overture (to the revised version of the opera) is part of the standard repertoire for orchestras, often played as the opening piece at concerts. Cast & Characters: Giovanni Foiani: Il Marchese di Calatrava Montserrat Caballé: Donna Leonora Piero Cappuccilli: Don Carlo di Vargas José Carreras: Don Alvaro Maria Luisa Nave: Preziosilla Nicolai Ghiaurov: Il Padre Guardiano (The Father Superior) Sesto Bruscantini: Fra Melitone Mila Zanlari: Curra, Leonora's maid Giuseppe Morresi: Un alcade Piero de Palma: Mastro Trabuco Carlo Meliciani: Un chirurgo Franco Riccardi: Un rivendugliolo Orchestra e Coro del Teatro alla Scala Conductor: Giuseppe Patané Synopsis - ACT I: A room in the country house of the Marquis of Calatrava The marquis bids his daughter Leonora an affectionate goodnight, assuring her that the country air will help her to forget the unworthy stranger (who has aspired to her hand). Leonora, on the point of eloping with Don Alvaro, the stranger, is seized with remorse, thinking mournfully of her life when parted forever from her country and her family, while her maid Curra tries to encourage her to pack, warning her of the fate which attends Alvaro if she were to yield to the temptation of confessing to her father. When Alvaro arrives, she is still reluctant to leave, asking him to delay by one day, so she can see her father again; but when Alvaro accuses her of not loving him, she responds to his passion and prepares to elope. But they are surprised by the Marquis and servants. Swearing that Leonora is pure, Alvaro offers his breast to the Marquis, who disdains to kill one he considers beneath him. Alvaro throws his pistol to the floor and it goes off, killing the Marquis, who dies cursing his daughter. Leonora and Alvaro flee. ACT II Scene 1. The inn of the village of Hornachuelos Arriving at the inn disguised as a man, Leonora hides when she sees her brother, Don Carlo, among the crowd waiting for supper. Don Carlo, disguised as a student, begins to interrogate the muleteer Trabuco about the identity of the person he brought to the inn (Leonora), but is interrupted by the arrival of the gipsy Preziosilla on her way to join the Spanish army fighting in Italy. After a rousing call to arms, she offers to tell fortunes, and sees misfortune in Carlo's hand, and also makes it clear that she knows he is not what he says he is. A procession of pilgrims passes on its way to the monastery of Hornachuelos and the company joins in the prayer. Carlo continues to question Trabuco about the sex of the traveller, and even suggests painting a moustache on his face as he sleeps, until restrained by the mayor, who asks him to account for himself. His name is Pereda, he answers, a student from Salamanca, who had accompanied his friend Don Carlo di Vargas in search of his sister and her foreign lover who had killed their father; Carlo has gone to (South) America and he will return to his studies. All go to bed. Scene 2. Outside the monastery of Hornachuelos in the mountains Leonora reaches her goal, the monastery, terrified to have recognised her brother and heard him tell her story. She also heard him say that Don Alvaro, whom she had thought killed in the confusion on the night of the failed elopement, is alive and has gone to South America; and believes that he has deserted her. She rings the bell and manages to convince the reluctant porter, brother Melitone, of her urgent need to see the Padre Guardiano.To the Padre Guardiano she reveals her identity. She had been sent to him by her confessor, as she wishes to follow the example of another woman and live as a hermit in a cave not far from the monastery. After some reluctance, he consents and calls the monks to prayer, to give her his blessing and state to her and the brothers (who do not know she is a woman) the conditions of her future life: she is to see no one and remain undisturbed; he will leave food for her and only in extreme danger or at the hour of her death is she to ring a bell to summon him.

The Magic Flute (Swedish: Trollflöjten) is Ingmar Bergman's 1975 film version of Mozart's opera Die Zauberflöte. Audio in Swedish with English subtitles. It was intended as a television production and was first shown on Swedish television on 1 January 1975, but was followed by a theatrical release later that year. The work is widely viewed as one of the most successful films of an opera ever made, and as an unusual item among the director's works. The film won BAFTA TV Award for Best Foreign Television Programme in 1976 and was nominated for Golden Globe for Best Foreign Language Film. In 1968, the Swedish poet Alf Henrikson prepared a Swedish-language version of the libretto for the purpose of a performance by the Royal Swedish Opera, which Bergman adopted as the basis of his script. However, Bergman altered the libretto in a number of respects: Sarastro is Pamina's father, trios in act 2 are omitted, and "Ein Mädchen oder Weibchen" is sung by Papageno just before he sees Papagena. Instead of his usual costume of plumage, Papageno wears conventional clothing. The roles of the Three Slaves, originally spoken roles assigned to adult actors, are given to children, who are silent. In producing the opera, Bergman sought to fulfill his early dream of a production in the Drottningholm Palace Theatre (one of the few surviving Baroque theatres in the world). This setting would also approximate the conditions of the original 1791 production in the Theater auf der Wieden in Vienna. The introductory exterior shots of the film are intended to suggest that it was indeed filmed in the Drottningholm theatre. However, the scenery at Drottningholm "was considered too fragile to accommodate a film crew. So the stage – complete with wings, curtains, and wind machines – was painstakingly copied and erected in the studios of the Swedish Film Institute". Bergman asked his friend Hans Schmidt-Isserstedt to conduct the opera, but he flatly refused. Choir conductor Eric Ericson also declined at first but was later persuaded by Bergman to take it on. The cinematographer was Bergman's longtime colleague Sven Nykvist. In addition to the singers who appeared in the film, the musical forces included the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra and Ericsson's own choir, the Swedish Radio Choir. Cast & Characters: Josef Köstlinger – Tamino Britt-Marie Aruhn [sv]; Kirsten Vaupel [sv]; Birgitta Smiding [sv] – Three Ladies Håkan Hagegård – Papageno Birgit Nordin – Queen of the Night Irma Urrila – Pamina Ragnar Ulfung – Monostatos Ulrik Cold – Sarastro Elisabeth Erikson [sv] – Papagena Erik Saedén – Speaker Gösta Prüzelius – First Priest Ulf Johanson – Second Priest Hans Johansson and Jerker Arvidson [sv] – Two Sentries in Armor Einar Larson, Siegfried Svensson, Sixten Fark, Sven-Eric Jacobsson, Folke Jonsson, Gösta Bäckelin, Arne Hendriksen, Hans Kyhle, Carl Henric Qvarfordt – Nine Priests Urban Malmberg [sv], Ansgar Krook [sv], Erland von Heijne – Three Boys Unknown – First, Second, and Third Slaves

A 1998 Short Animation Film directed by Galina Shakitskaya. Night on Bald Mountain, also known as Night on the Bare Mountain, is a series of compositions by Modest Mussorgsky (1839–1881). Inspired by Russian literary works and legend, Mussorgsky composed a "musical picture", St. John's Eve on Bald Mountain on the theme of a Witches' Sabbath occurring at Bald Mountain on St. John's Eve, which he completed on that very night, 23 June 1867. Together with Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov's Sadko (1867), it is one of the first tone poems by a Russian composer. Mussorgsky was part of a group of Russian composers known as "The Five" that was an innovator of Russian music and promoted a uniquely Russian aesthetic identity. Night on Bald Mountain does that by using a Russian folk story as the inspiration. Mussorgsky was the only member of the group, which included Rimsky-Korsakov and Borodin, who never left his native country. Born into wealth and lineage-his landowning family was reputedly descended from the first Russian Ruler, Rurik-Mussorgsky was sent to officers' school and was groomed to serve in the military, like many of the men in his family. Mussorgsky is one of the most daring and creative Russian composers of his time and his works are novel yet stylistically romantic. Many of his compositions are inspired by Russian history and Russian folklore; folk melodies and harmonies can frequently be heard in his works. Mussorgsky's first ideas for the tone poem A Night on Bald Mountain were inspired by the ancient Russian legend of nocturnal revels that take place on St. John's Night in June on a hill called Lysa Hora near Kiev. The legend tells of a demon, Chernobog, who leads the revels until, in the composer's words, "the sounds of the far-off bell of the little church in a village...disperses the Spirits of Darkness." In 1860, Mussorgsky entertained thoughts of using this idea to write a one-act opera based on Nikolai Gogol's story the The Eve of Ivan Kupala. Ivan Kupala is a combination of St. John and a Slavic god, Kupalo whose feast day is the Summer Solstice. This idea didn't materialize and was transformed instead into a plan for a one-act opera based on Baron Mengden's play the Witches. Both projects were abandoned. In 1867, Mussorgsky had turned the music into what he called a "tone-picture" for orchestra. This piece was entitled St. John's Night on the Bare Mountain. The score was modified several times before finding its present orchestration; Mussorgky's friend Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov undertook the revisions and re-orchestration of the so called "fourth version" performed it on October 27, 1886 in St. Petersburg as A Night on Bald Mountain. Rimsky-Korsakov altered the ending of the work in his revision of the score. In Mussorgsky's original version, the ending is brutal and savage; Rimsky-Korsakov has the end fade away peacefully. Known as the "Rimsky-Korsakov version" it is a highly polished and effective score that has kept Mussorgsky's name before a wide public and has become one of the most popular works in orchestral literature. The most recognized version of Mussorgsky's tone poem today comes from Walt Disney's 1940 animated film Fantasia as arranged by Leopold Stokowski. Stokowski based his arrangement on Rimsky-Korsakov's in form and content, but on Mussorgsky's original in orchestration. Although the most famous version of A Night on Bald Mountain, the Stokowski arrangement is rarely heard outside of the movie.

Swan Lake (Russian: Лебединое озеро, tr. Lebedinoye ozero), Op. 20, is a ballet composed by Russian composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky in 1875–76. Despite its initial failure, it is now one of the most popular ballets of all time. The scenario, initially in two acts, was fashioned from Russian and German folk tales and tells the story of Odette, a princess turned into a swan by an evil sorcerer's curse. The choreographer of the original production was Julius Reisinger (Václav Reisinger). The ballet was premiered by the Bolshoi Ballet on 4 March [O.S. 20 February] 1877 at the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow. Although it is presented in many different versions, most ballet companies base their stagings both choreographically and musically on the 1895 revival of Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov, first staged for the Imperial Ballet on 15 January 1895, at the Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg. For this revival, Tchaikovsky's score was revised by the St. Petersburg Imperial Theatre's chief conductor and composer Riccardo Drigo. Swan Lake is generally presented in either four acts, four scenes (primarily outside Russia and Eastern Europe) or three acts, four scenes (primarily in Russia and Eastern Europe). The biggest difference of productions all over the world is that the ending, originally tragic, is now sometimes altered to a happy ending. Some productions include a prologue that shows how Odette first meets Rothbart, who turns Odette into a swan. This rendition of Pyotr Ilych Tchaikovsky's ballet Swan Lake features dancers Ulyana Lopatkina and Danila Korsuntsev; it was staged and filmed at the Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg. The Orchestra of the Mariinsky Theatre, under the baton of Valery Gergiev. Cast & Characters: Ulyana Lopatkina as Odette-Odile Danila Korsuntsev as Prince Siegfried Alexandra Gronskaya as The Queen Pyotr Stasiunas as Tutor Andrei Ivanov as Jester Ilya Kuznetsov as Rothbart

ACT IV - Scene 1: The King's study in Madrid The king broods that his wife has never loved him. In answer to his summons the grand inquisitor appears and Philip confides his suspicion that the prince is planning rebellion. They agree that he should be handed over to the Inquisition, but then the inquisitor demands that Posa be handed over as a far greater heretic. The king refuses, is denounced by the inquisitor, and then tries to make his peace with him, though resentful that the throne has to always give way to the church. The queen rushes in demanding justice, as her jewel casket has been stolen. It has in fact been given to Philip, who orders her to open it. The portrait of Don Carlos is revealed and she defends this on the grounds that he had once been promised as her husband. When the king abuses her and accuses her of adultery, she faints and he calls for help. Eboli and Posa appear, the latter reproaching the king for his lack of self-control. When the two women are left alone, Eboli confesses that it was she who betrayed the queen, jealous because she too loved Carlos, but in vain. The queen pardons her, but when Eboli confesses that she has been the king's mistress, Elisabeth orders her either to a convent or to exile, leaving Eboli to curse the fatal gift of beauty which led to her downfall. Scene 2: An underground prison Posa visits Carlos in prison and tells him that the papers he took from Carlos have been found in his possession and have proved him to be the leader of the rebellion. Posa is shot by an officer of the Inquisition and dies happy that he has been able to preserve Carlos to save Flanders. He tells him that Elisabeth will explain everything to him the next day at the emperor's tomb. Philip, accompanied by grandees, appears and offers Carlos back his sword, but he accuses his father of the murder of Posa, whose death the king also mourns. The people are threatening revolt unless the prince is set free. The king orders the gates to be opened and they surge in, but are subdued when the grand inquisitor orders them to kneel before their king. ACT V - The tomb of Charles V at San Yuste Elisabeth kneels in prayer at the tomb of Charles V. She remembers happier days in France, and prepares to see Carlos for the last time. When he arrives he declares that honor has vanquished love and that he is ready to go to Flanders. They promise to meet in a better world, but their farewell is interrupted by the king, with the grand inquisitor and officers of the Inquisition. Carlos draws his sword to defend himself but is suddenly drawn into the monastery by the mysterious monk, his disguise thrown off, now revealed as the emperor.

Composer: Giuseppe Verdi Librettist: Joseph Méry, and Camille du Locle. Translated into Italian by A. Ghislanzoni. Premiere: French version in five acts: 11 March 1867, Paris Language: Five-act version sung in Italian Synopsis: https://www.opera-arias.com/verdi/don-carlo/synopsis/ Translation: English subtitles Cast&Characters: Renata Scotto as Elizabeth of Valois Vasile Moldoveanu as Don Carlo Tatiana Troyanos as Princess of Eboli Sherrill Milnes as Rodrigo Paul Plishka as Philip II Jerome Hines as the Grand Inquisitor Betsy Norden as Tebaldo The Metropolitan Orchestra and Chorus Conductor James Levine Chorus Master David Stivender Set Designer David Reppa Production by John Dexter Costume Designer Ray Diffen Recorded at the Metropolitan Opera House on 21 February 1980 Don Carlos is a five-act grand opera composed by Giuseppe Verdi to a French language libretto by Camille du Locle and Joseph Méry, based on the dramatic play Don Carlos, Infant von Spanien ("Don Carlos, Infante of Spain") by Friedrich Schiller. The opera is most often performed in Italian translation, usually under the title Don Carlo. The story is based on conflicts in the life of Carlos, Prince of Asturias (1545-1568), after his betrothed Elisabeth of Valois was married instead to his father Philip II of Spain as part of the peace treaty ending the Italian War of 1551-1559 between the Houses of Habsburg and Valois. It was commissioned and produced by the Théâtre Impérial de l'Opéra (Paris Opera) and premiered at the company's theatre, the Salle Le Peletier, on 11 March 1867. Over the following twenty years, cuts and additions were made to the opera, resulting in a number of versions being available to directors and conductors. No other Verdi opera exists in so many versions. At its full-length (including the ballet and the cuts made before the first performance), it contains about four hours of music and is Verdi's longest opera.

ACT II - Inside Bartolo's house Bartolo is voicing his suspicions about this soldier when Almaviva appears again, this time disguised as "Don Alonso," a supposed pupil of Don Basilio, who, he says, is indisposed and has sent him to take Rosina's music lesson. To allay Bartolo's suspicions he produces Rosina's note, pretending it has fallen into his hands by accident and suggesting that Bartolo tell her it was given to him by a mistress of the Count, to prove that he is trifling with her affections. Rosina sings an aria to the Count's accompaniment and as Bartolo dozes off, the Count explains his plan for eloping with Rosina later that night. Figaro appears to shave Bartolo and manages to get hold of the key to the balcony. Basilio arrives, but is told to go home because he looks so ill, advice he accepts the more readily because Almaviva slips him a bribe. Figaro begins to shave Bartolo, while Almaviva and Rosina continue to arrange the elopement. Bartolo realises what is going on and the Count and Figaro make their escape. Basilio comes back with the unwelcome news that the unknown suitor is probably Almaviva himself, a conclusion he has reached because of the size of the bribe. Bartolo sends Basilio to bring the notary to perform the marriage with Rosina and, producing her letter to the Count, convinces her that her affections are being trifled with, so she tells him of the planned elopement and agrees to marry him. He goes to get the law to arrest Figaro and Almaviva. During the storm Figaro and Almaviva climb a ladder to the balcony, only to be confronted by an angry Rosina, but the Count calms her fears by revealing his identity. Figaro urges haste, but the ladder has been taken. Basilio arrives with the notary and they get him to solemnise Almaviva's marriage to Rosina. Bartolo and the law arrive too late.

Composer: Giaochino Rossini Librettist: Cesare Sterbini Premiere: 20 February 1816, Rome (Teatro Argentina) Language: Italian Synopsis: https://www.opera-arias.com/rossini/il-barbiere-di-siviglia/synopsis/ Translation: English subtitles Cast & Characters: Figaro - Leo Nucci Il Conte d'Almaviva - Rockwell Blake Rosina - Kathleen Battle Bartolo - Enzo Dara Basilio - Ferruccio Furlanetto Berta - Loretta di Franco Fiorello - David Hamilton Ambrogio - Edvard Ghazal An official - Charles Anthony The Metropolitan Opera Orchestra and Chorus Conductor: Ralf Weikert Chorus master: David Stivender Set design: Robin Wagner Costume design: Patricia Zipprodt The Barber of Seville, or The Futile Precaution (Il barbiere di Siviglia, ossia L'inutile precauzione) is an opera buffa in two acts by Gioachino Rossini with a libretto by Cesare Sterbini. The libretto was based on Pierre Beaumarchais's comedy Le Barbier de Séville (1775), which was originally an opéra comique, or a mixture of spoken play with music. The première (under the title Almaviva, or the Futile Precaution) took place on 20 February 1816, at the Teatro Argentina, Rome. It was one of the earliest Italian operas to be performed in America and premiered at the Park Theater in New York City on 29 November 1825. Rossini's Barber has proven to be one of the greatest masterpieces of comedy within music, and has been described as the opera buffa of all opere buffe; even after two hundred years, its popularity on the modern opera stage attests to that greatness. An opera based on the play had previously been composed by Giovanni Paisiello, another was composed in 1796 by Nicolas Isouard and by Francesco Morlacchi in 1807. Though the work of Paisiello triumphed for a time, Rossini's later version alone has stood the test of time and continues to be a mainstay of operatic repertoire. ACT I - Scene 1: A small square in Seville before dawn Disguised as a student, Count Almaviva serenades Rosina. He learns from Figaro, a former servant, now the city barber and general factotum, that she is Dr Bartolo's ward, and that he has access to the house. Rosina contrives to drop a note for Almaviva, sending her guardian on a wild-goose chase to pick it up and causing him to resolve to keep her under even closer guard. The letter asks for information about her unknown suitor's name, rank and intentions; and when Bartolo has set off in search of his crony Don Basilio, the music teacher, to arrange his marriage to Rosina, Almaviva sings another serenade, telling her that he is a poor student called Lindoro. Inspired by the Count's munificence, Figaro declares that he can get him into the house, disguised as a drunken soldier seeking a billet. Scene 2: Inside Dr Bartolo's house Rosina is determined to marry her unknown suitor, while Bartolo is set on marrying her himself. He tries to interrogate his servants about what has been going on in his house, but they can only yawn or sneeze, because they have been dosed by Figaro. Basilio tells him that Couant Almaviva has been seen in Seville and advises getting rid of him by slander. They retire to work on the marriage contract. Figaro, who has overheard their plans, tells Rosina and urges her to write to his "poor cousin." The letter is already written and she gives it to him. Bartolo, suspecting that she has been writing, confronts her with the evidence. She has an answer to all his accusations, but he is not convinced and says he will lock her in her room when he goes out. Almaviva bursts in, disguised as a drunken soldier. In the confusion he slips Rosina a note, which is seen by Bartolo, but Rosina smartly substitutes the laundry list. The watch arrive to quell the riot, but are awed by a document produced by Almaviva.

1. L'italiana in Algeri Ouverture dal "L'italiana in Algeri" Temporale dal "Il Barbiere di Siviglia" 2. Pulcinella Ouverture dal "Il Turco in Italia" 3. La Gazza Ladra Sinfonia Ouverture dal "La Gazza Ladra" Consulenza musicale di Gianfranco Maselli Orchestra diretta dal Maestro Arturo Basile.

"Once Upon a Time Kuskovo Manor in XVIII century" is a 1993 ballet film by Svetlana Kononchuk, with choreography of Leonid Yakobson. Music: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Gioacchino Rossini, Gaetano Donizetti. Moscow's Bolshoi Ballet Academy dancers: Lyudmila Vasilyeva, Svetlana Kubasova, Lilia Musovarova, Tatyana Paliy, Konstantin Durnev, Andrey Kudelin, Vladimir Malakhov. Kuskovo was the summer country house and estate of the Sheremetev family. Built in the mid-18th century, it was originally situated several miles to the east of Moscow but now is part of the East District of the city. It was one of the first great summer country estates of the Russian nobility, and one of the few near Moscow still preserved. Today the estate is the home of the Russian State Museum of Ceramics, and the park is a favourite place of recreation for Muscovites. In the 17th century, Kuskovo became the property of Boris Petrovich Sheremetev (1652–1719), a Russian field marshal under Czar Peter the Great, who led the Russian Army in the victory over the Swedes at the Battle of Poltava (1707) in the Great Northern War. There was already a wooden church on the site, a house and several ponds. The palace was constructed by his son Petr Borisovich Sheremetev (1713–1788). Count Sheremetev was one of the richest men in Russia, close to the court and a patron of the arts. He built Kuskovo at approximately the same time that he built a city palace on the banks of the Fontanka River in St. Petersburg. When he decided to build a palace at Kuskovo, he ordered that it be larger and more beautiful than the estates of other nobles, and equal to any residence of the Czars. Since it was less than a day's journey from the center of Moscow, it was not designed to accommodate overnight guests, nor for agriculture or any other practical purpose, but purely as a place for entertainment, ceremony and festivities. The estate was visited by Empress Catherine II in 1775; an obelisk in the park marks the event.

Composer: Giuseppe Verdi Librettist: Arrigo Boito, based on Shakespeare's The Merry Wives of Windsor and Henry IV Premiere: 9 February 1893, Milan (La Scala) Language: Italian Synopsis: https://www.opera-arias.com/verdi/falstaff/synopsis/ Translation: English subtitles Cast & Characters: Ambrogio Maestri as Sir John Falstaff Roberto Frontali as Ford Juan Diego Flòrez as Fenton Inva Mula as Nannetta Ernesto Gavazzi as Dr. Cajus Paolo Barbacini as Bardolfo Luigi Roni as Pistola Barbara Frittoli as Mrs. Alice Ford Bernadette Manca Di Nissa as Mrs. Quickly Anna Caterina Antonacci as Mrs. Meg Page Orchestra e Coro del Teatro alla Scala Conductor Riccardo Muti Directed for Stage by Ruggero Cappuccio - After a historical staging (1913) by the Teatro Verdi, Busseto. Recorded live at the Teatro Verdi. Busseto, 10 April 2001. Directed for TV by Pierre Cavasillas Falstaff is an operatic commedia lirica in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi, adapted by Arrigo Boito from Shakespeare's plays The Merry Wives of Windsor and scenes from Henry IV. The plot revolves around the thwarted, sometimes farcical, efforts of the fat knight Sir John Falstaff to seduce two married women to gain access to their husbands' wealth. It was Verdi's last opera, written in the composer's ninth decade, and only the second of his 26 operas to be a comedy. It was also the third of Verdi's operas to be based on a Shakespearean play, following his earlier Macbeth and Otello. (Verdi had toyed, too, with writing an opera based on King Lear and Arrigo Boito later tried to interest him in Antony and Cleopatra, but neither project was ever brought to fruition.) While it has not proved to be as immensely popular as the Verdi works that immediately preceded it, namely Aida and Otello, Falstaff has long been an admired favorite with critics and musicians because of its brilliant orchestration, scintillating libretto and refined melodic invention. Verdi was concerned about working on a new opera at his advanced age, but he yearned to write a comic work and was pleased with Boito's draft libretto. It took the collaborators three years from mid-1889 to complete. Although the prospect of a new opera from Verdi aroused immense interest in Italy and around the world, Falstaff did not prove to be as popular as earlier works in the composer's canon. After the initial performances in Italy, other European countries and the US, the work was neglected until the conductor Arturo Toscanini insisted on its revival at La Scala and the Metropolitan Opera in New York from the late 1890s into the next century. Some felt that the piece suffered from a lack of the full-blooded melodies of the best of Verdi's previous operas, a view that Toscanini strongly opposed. Conductors of the generation after Toscanini to champion the work included Herbert von Karajan, Georg Solti and Leonard Bernstein. The work is now part of the standard operatic repertory of many opera companies.

Composer: Giacomo Antonio Puccini Librettist: Giuseppe Giacosa, and Luigi Illica Premiere: 1 February 1896, Turin (Teatro Regio) Language: Italian Synopsis: https://www.opera-arias.com/puccini/la-boh%C3%A8me/synopsis/ Translation: English subtitles Cast & Characters: Mirella Freni (soprano) - Mimi Gianni Raimondi (tenore) - Rodolfo Rolando Panerai (baritono) - Marcello Gianni Maffeo (baritono) - Schaunard Ivo Vinko (basso) - Colline Carlo Badioli (basso) - Benoit Carlo Badioli (basso) - Alcindoro Adriana Martino (soprano) - Musetta Franco Ricciardi (tenore) - Parpignol Orchestra e Coro del Teatro Alla Scala Conductor: Herbert von Karajan Production and Set Design by Franco Zeffirelli Costume Design by Marcel Escoffier Artistic Supervision by Herbert von Karajan La bohème is an opera in four acts, composed by Giacomo Puccini between 1893 and 1895 to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa, based on Scènes de la vie de bohème (1851) by Henri Murger, a collection of vignettes portraying young bohemians living in the Latin Quarter of Paris in the 1840s. Although usually called a novel, it has no unified plot. Like the 1849 play by Murger and Théodore Barrière, the opera's libretto focuses on the relationship between Rodolfo and Mimì, ending with her death. Also like the play, the libretto combines two characters from the novel, Mimì and Francine, into a single Mimì character. The world premiere of La bohème was in Turin on 1 February 1896 at the Teatro Regio, conducted by the 28-year-old Arturo Toscanini. Since then, La bohème has become part of the standard Italian opera repertory and is one of the most frequently performed operas worldwide. According to Operabase, it is the fourth most frequently performed opera worldwide. In 1946, fifty years after the opera's premiere, Toscanini conducted a commemorative performance of it on radio with the NBC Symphony Orchestra. A recording of the performance was later released by RCA Victor on vinyl record, tape and compact disc. It is the only recording ever made of a Puccini opera by its original conductor.

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Composer: Giuseppe Verdi Librettist: Antonio Ghislanzoni Premiere: 24 December 1871, Cairo (Opera House) Language: Italian Synopsis: https://www.opera-arias.com/verdi/aida/synopsis/ Translation: English Subtitles Cast & Characters: Maria Chiara as Aida Nicola Martinucci as Radames Fiorenza Cossotto as Amneris Giuseppe Scandola as Amonasro) Alfredo Zanazzo as King of Egypt Carlo Zardo as Ramfis Chorus, orchestra and ballet of "Arena di Verona" theatre. Conductor Anton Guadagno Aida is an opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Antonio Ghislanzoni, based on a scenario written by French Egyptologist Auguste Mariette. Set in the Old Kingdom of Egypt, it was commissioned by Cairo's Khedivial Opera House and had its première there on 24 December 1871, in a performance conducted by Giovanni Bottesini. Today the work holds a central place in the operatic canon, receiving performances every year around the world. Ghislanzoni's scheme follows a scenario often attributed to the French Egyptologist Auguste Mariette, but Verdi biographer Mary Jane Phillips-Matz argues that the source is actually Temistocle Solera. Metastasio's libretto Nitteti (1756) was a major source of the plot. Contrary to popular belief, the opera was not written to celebrate the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869, nor that of the Khedivial Opera House (which opened with Verdi's Rigoletto) in the same year. (Verdi had been asked to compose an ode for the opening of the Canal, but declined on the grounds that he did not write "occasional pieces".) Aida met with great acclaim when it finally opened in Cairo on 24 December 1871. Although Verdi did not attend the premiere in Cairo, he was most dissatisfied with the fact that the audience consisted of invited dignitaries, politicians and critics, but no members of the general public. He therefore considered the Italian première, held at La Scala, Milan on 8 February 1872, and a performance in which he was heavily involved at every stage, to be its real première. Verdi had also written the role of Aida for the voice of Teresa Stolz, who sang it for the first time at the Milan première. Aida was received with great enthusiasm at its Milan première. The opera was soon mounted at major opera houses throughout Italy.

Composer: Giuseppe Verdi Librettist: Arrigo Boïto Premiere: 5 February 1887, Milan (La Scala) Language: Italian Translation: English Subtitles Synopsis: https://www.opera-arias.com/verdi/otello/synopsis/ Cast & Characters: Pier Miranda Ferraro as Otello Laura Londi as Desdemona Tito Gobbi as Iago Giorgio Goretti as Cassio Anna Di Stasio as Emilia Augusto Pedroni as Roderigo Alessandro Maddelena as Lodovico Angelo Nosotti as Montano Chorus and Orchestra of Teatro La Fenice Conductor Nino Sanzogno Otello is an opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Arrigo Boito, based on Shakespeare's play Othello. It was Verdi's penultimate opera, and was first performed at the Teatro alla Scala, Milan, on February 5, 1887. The composer was reluctant to write anything new after the success of Aida in 1871, and he retreated into retirement. It took his Milan publisher Giulio Ricordi the next ten years, first to encourage the revision of Verdi's 1857 Simon Boccanegra by introducing Boito as librettist and then to begin the arduous process of persuading and cajoling Verdi to see Boito's completed libretto for Otello in July/August 1881. It wasn't until 1884, five years after the first drafts of the libretto, that composition began, with most of the work finishing in late 1885. When it finally premiered in Milan on 5 February 1887, it proved to be a resounding success, and further stagings of Otello soon followed at leading theatres throughout Europe and America.

Scheherazade, also commonly Sheherazade Op. 35, is a symphonic suite composed by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov in 1888 and based on One Thousand and One Nights (also known as The Arabian Nights). The music premiered in Saint Petersburg on October 28, 1888, conducted by Rimsky-Korsakov. This orchestral work combines two features typical of Russian music in general and of Rimsky-Korsakov in particular: dazzling, colorful orchestration and an interest in the East, which figured greatly in the history of Imperial Russia, as well as orientalism in general. The name "Scheherazade" refers to the main character Scheherazade of the One Thousand and One Nights. It is one of Rimsky-Korsakov's most popular works. The original ballet adaptation of Scheherazade premiered on June 4, 1910, at the Opéra Garnier in Paris by the Ballets Russes. The choreography for the ballet was by Michel Fokine and the libretto was from Fokine and Léon Bakst. The Ballets Russes' Scheherazade is known for its traditionally dazzling costumes, opulent scenery, and erotic choreography and narrative which was rarely seen in ballets of the time.

The Firebird is a ballet and orchestral concert work by the Russian composer Igor Stravinsky. It was written for the 1910 Paris season of Sergei Diaghilev's Ballets Russes company; the original choreography was by Michel Fokine, who collaborated with Alexandre Benois on a scenario based on the Russian fairy tales of the Firebird and the blessing and curse it possesses for its owner. It was first performed at the Opéra de Paris on 25 June 1910 and was an immediate success, catapulting Stravinsky to international fame. Although designed as a work for the stage, with specific passages accompanying characters and action, the music achieved equal if not greater recognition as a concert piece. Stravinsky was a young and virtually unknown composer when Diaghilev commissioned him to compose The Firebird for the Ballets Russes. Its success was the start of Stravinsky's partnership with Diaghilev, which would subsequently produce further ballet productions until 1928, including Petrushka (1911), The Rite of Spring (1913), and Apollo (1928). Benois collaborated with the choreographer Michel Fokine, drawing from several books of Russian fairy tales including the collection of Alexander Afanasyev, to concoct a story involving the Firebird and the evil magician Koschei. The scenery was designed by Aleksandr Golovin and the costumes by Léon Bakst. Synopsis: The ballet centers on the journey of its hero, Prince Ivan. While hunting in the forest, he strays into the magical realm of the evil Koschei the Immortal, whose immortality is preserved by keeping his soul in a magic egg hidden in a casket. Ivan chases and captures the Firebird and is about to kill her; she begs for her life, and he spares her. As a token of thanks, she offers him an enchanted feather that he can use to summon her should he be in dire need. Prince Ivan then meets thirteen princesses who are under the spell of Koschei and falls in love with one of them, Tsarevna. The next day, Ivan confronts the magician and eventually they begin quarrelling. When Koschei sends his minions after Ivan, he summons the Firebird. She intervenes, bewitching the monsters and making them dance an elaborate, energetic dance (the "Infernal Dance"). Exhausted, the creatures and Koschei then fall into a deep sleep. While they sleep, the Firebird directs Ivan to a tree stump where the casket with the egg containing Koschei's soul is hidden. Ivan destroys the egg, and with the spell broken and Koschei dead, the magical creatures that Koschei held captive are freed and the palace disappears. All of the "real" beings, including the princesses, awaken and with one final hint of the Firebird's music (though in Fokine's choreography she makes no appearance in that final scene on-stage), celebrate their victory.

Petrushka is a ballet by Russian composer Igor Stravinsky. It was written for the 1911 Paris season of Sergei Diaghilev's Ballets Russes company; the original choreography was by Michel Fokine and stage designs and costumes by Alexandre Benois, who assisted Stravinsky with the libretto. The ballet premiered at the Théâtre du Châtelet on 13 June 1911 with Vaslav Nijinsky as Petrushka, Tamara Karsavina as the lead ballerina, Alexander Orlov as the Moor, and Enrico Cecchetti the charlatan. Petrushka tells the story of the loves and jealousies of three puppets. The three are brought to life by the Charlatan during the 1830 Shrovetide Fair (Maslenitsa) in Saint Petersburg, Russia. Petrushka loves the Ballerina, but she rejects him. She prefers the Moor. Petrushka is angry and hurt, and challenges the Moor. The Moor kills him with his scimitar. Petrushka's ghost rises above the puppet theatre as night falls. He shakes his fist at the Charlatan, then collapses in a second death. Petrushka is a puppet. He is a character known across Europe under different names: Punch in England, Polichinelle in France, Pulcinella in Italy, Kasperle in Germany, and Petrushka in Russia. Petrushka brings music, dance, and design together in a unified whole. It is one of the most popular of the Ballets Russes productions. It is usually performed today using the original designs and choreography.

Sir Walter Scott, 1st Baronet FRSE FSAScot (15 August 1771 – 21 September 1832), was a Scottish historian, novelist, poet, and playwright. Many of his works remain classics of European and Scottish literature, notably the novels Ivanhoe (1819), Rob Roy (1817), Waverley (1814), Old Mortality (1816), The Heart of Mid-Lothian (1818), and The Bride of Lammermoor (1819), along with the narrative poems Marmion (1808) and The Lady of the Lake (1810). He had a major impact on European and American literature. Ivanhoe, the classic tale of chivalry, love and political intrigue, turned Sir Walter Scott into the first international best-selling author. This film documents the heroic and tragic life of Scott who, some say, invented a nation.

George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron FRS (22 January 1788 – 19 April 1824) was an English romantic poet and peer. He was one of the leading figures of the Romantic movement, and has been regarded as among the greatest of English poets. Lord Byron was educated at Trinity College, Cambridge, later travelling extensively across Europe to places such as Italy, where he lived for seven years in Venice, Ravenna, and Pisa after he was forced to flee England due to lynching threats. During his stay in Italy, he frequently visited his friend and fellow poet Percy Bysshe Shelley. Later in life Byron joined the Greek War of Independence fighting the Ottoman Empire and died leading a campaign during that war, for which Greeks revere him as a folk hero. He died in 1824 at the age of 36 from a fever contracted after the First and Second Sieges of Missolonghi. Dubbed "mad, bad and dangerous to know" by one of his many lovers, Lord Byron was a prototype celebrity whose legend has not diminished with the passage of time. Omnibus looks at the man behind the myth and his legacy. Omnibus was an arts-based BBC television documentary series, broadcast mainly on BBC1 in the United Kingdom. The programme was the successor to the long-running arts-based series 'Monitor'. It ran from 1967 until 2003.

ACT III - A dark cavern: The witches prepare a brew. When Macbeth appears and demands to know his fate, they summon up spirits which tell him first to beware Macduff (whereupon he resolves to kill him), then that he cannot be killed by anyone born of woman (he decides to spare Macduff, but changes his mind again, wishing to be doubly sure) and that he cannot be killed until Birnam Wood comes to Dunsinane. When he asks if Banquo's children will be kings, he is shown a vision of eight kings, the last holding a mirror showing still more, and Banquo indicating that they are his issue. Macbeth faints and the witches vanish. Lady Macbeth encourages him to kill Fleance and he tells her that he will also have Macduff and his family put to death. They swear vengeance on all who oppose them. ACT IV Scene 1: Near the Scottish border The refugees who have fled Macbeth's tyranny lament the unhappy state of their homeland and Macduff bewails the death of his family. Malcolm orders the soldiers to take branches from Birnam Wood as camouflage and exhorts them to follow him to free Scotland. Scene 2: A room in Macbeth's castle Lady Macbeth walks in her sleep, reliving the murders and trying to wash the blood from her hands. Scene 3: A hall in Macbeth's castle Faced with a stream of desertions, Macbeth takes comfort from the prophecies, though he is weary of life, and the news of his wife's death confirms his feelings about the futility of existence. When he learns that Birnam Wood is moving towards his castle, he realises that the witches have deceived him, but is determined to die fighting. The scene changes to a plain where the battle rages. Macbeth learns that Macduff was not born naturally and is killed by him. Macduff hails Malcolm as king and the people join in thanksgiving.

Composer: Giuseppe Verdi Librettist: Francesco Maria Piave Premiere: Original version: 14 March 1847, Florence (Teatro della Pergola) Language: Italian Synopsis: https://www.opera-arias.com/verdi/macbeth/synopsis/ Libretto: https://www.opera-arias.com/verdi/macbeth/libretto/ Translation in English: https://www.opera-arias.com/verdi/macbeth/libretto/english/ Cast & Characters: Željko Lučić as Macbeth Anna Netrebko as Lady Macbeth Ildebrando D'Arcangelo as Banco Yusif Eyvazov as Macduff Konu Kim as Malcom Francesca Chiejina as Dama di Lady Macbeth Simon Shibambu as Doctor Jonathan Fisher as Servant Royal Opera Chorus and The Orchestra of the Royal Opera House Conductor Antonio Pappano Director Phyllida Lloyd Macbeth is an opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi, with an Italian libretto by Francesco Maria Piave and additions by Andrea Maffei, based on William Shakespeare's play of the same name. Written for the Teatro della Pergola in Florence, it was Verdi's tenth opera and premiered on 14 March 1847. Macbeth was the first Shakespeare play that Verdi adapted for the operatic stage. The Royal Opera’s production uses Verdi’s 1865 Paris revision of the opera, which includes Lady Macbeth’s riveting aria ‘La luce langue’. After the success of Attila in 1846, by which time the composer had become well established, Macbeth came before the great successes of 1851 to 1853 (Rigoletto, Il trovatore and La traviata) which propelled him into universal fame. Verdi’s life-long love affair with Shakespeare’s works began with Macbeth, a play he considered to be ‘one of the greatest creations of man’. With his librettist Francesco Maria Piave Verdi set out to create ‘something out of the ordinary’. Their success is borne out in every bar of a score that sees Verdi at his most theatrical: it bristles with demonic energy. As sources, Shakespeare's plays provided Verdi with lifelong inspiration: some, such as an adaption of King Lear (as Re Lear) were never realized, but he wrote his two final operas using Othello as the basis for Otello (1887) and The Merry Wives of Windsor as the basis for Falstaff (1893). ACT I Scene 1: A wood Returning from a victory, Macbeth is greeted by witches who hail him not only by his rightful title, Thane of Glamis, but also as Thane of Cawdor and future king. They hail his companion Banquo as the ancestor of a line of kings. Messengers from the king greet Macbeth as Thane of Cawdor, explaining that the previous holder of the title has been executed. Macbeth broods over the other prophecy, but decides not to lift his hand against the king, while Banquo reflects that such prophecies could be a trap leading to destruction. Scene 2: A hall in Macbeth's castle Lady Macbeth reads the letter in which Macbeth relates these events, and eagerly awaits his return, so that she can strengthen his resolve to obtain the crown. She greets with delight the news that King Duncan intends to pass the night at the castle, and when Macbeth arrives, easily convinces him to murder the king. Duncan appears with his retinue, including his son, Malcolm. On his way to commit the murder, Macbeth has a hallucination, seeing a dagger in the air, and strange noises accompany the deed. Stricken with terror and guilt, he is unable to take back the dagger which he has inadvertently brought with him. Lady Macbeth derides his fear, puts back the dagger and tells him to wash his hands and assume an appearance of innocence. Knocking at the gate heralds the arrival of Macduff and Banquo. Macduff goes to call the king while Banquo muses on the dreadful night, full of portents. Macduff's announcement of the murder provokes horror and cries to heaven for vengeance from all, including Macbeth and Lady Macbeth. ACT II Scene 1: A room in Macbeth's castle Macbeth confesses to his wife that he is brooding over the witches' prophecy that Banquo's descendants will be kings, and resolves to have him killed. Lady Macbeth exults that their claim to the throne will soon be unchallenged, even if at the cost of more killing. Scene 2: A park outside Macbeth's castle Banquo's forebodings are fulfilled when he is set upon and killed, but his son Fleance escapes. Scene 3: A hall in the castle A banquet is in progress and Lady Macbeth invites the guests to drink. One of the murderers reports that Banquo has been killed, but Fleance has escaped. Macbeth, about to take his seat, is confronted by Banquo's ghost, which only he can see. The guests are puzzled by his horror, but he recovers when the ghost vanishes and Lady Macbeth resumes her song in an attempt to restore the interrupted conviviality. But the ghost reappears and Macbeth's terror arouses the suspicions of the guests. Macduff decides to flee and Macbeth resolves to visit the witches again.

Composer: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Librettist: Lorenzo da Ponte Premiere: 29 October 1787, Prague (Gräflich Nostitzsches Nationaltheater) Language: Italian Cast: Cesare Siepi, Dezső Ernster, Elisabeth Grümmer, Anton Dermota, Lisa Della Casa, Otto Edelmann, Erna Berger, Walter Berry. The Choir of Wiener Staatsoper Wiener Philharmoniker Wilhelm Furtwängler Don Giovanni is an opera in two acts with music by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart to an Italian libretto by Lorenzo Da Ponte. Its subject is a centuries-old Spanish legend about a libertine as told by playwright Tirso de Molina in his 1630 play El burlador de Sevilla y convidado de piedra. It is a dramma giocoso blending comedy, melodrama and supernatural elements (although the composer entered it into his catalogue simply as opera buffa). It was premiered by the Prague Italian opera at the National Theater (of Bohemia), now called the Estates Theatre, on 29 October 1787. Don Giovanni is regarded as one of the greatest operas of all time. Synopsis: Don Giovanni, a young, arrogant, and sexually promiscuous nobleman, abuses and outrages everyone else in the cast until he encounters something he cannot kill, beat up, dodge, or outwit. ACT I Leporello waits outside a house where his master, Don Giovanni, is forcing himself upon Donna Anna. She cries for help and her father, the Commendatore, runs to her assistance. In the ensuing fight Don Giovanni kills the Commendatore. Donna Anna and her betrothed, Don Ottavio, vow revenge. Donna Elvira, recently jilted by Don Giovanni, arrives in search of the Don; he makes good his escape by leaving Leporello to read out his "book of conquests", in which the names of the Don's 2065 lovers are recorded. Don Giovanni comes across a peasant wedding and promptly begins to charm the bride, Zerlina, but Elvira arrives and alerts her to the Don's intentions. Donna Anna and Don Ottavio then arrive, and as the Don takes his leave of them, Anna identifies him as the man who had tried to rape her. At a party hold by Don Giovanni, Zerlina reassures her lover Masetto of her affections, but she begins to weaken in the Don's presence. Wearing masks, Anna, Elvira and Ottavio arrive at the ball, which is interrupted by Zerlina's scream. She stumbles onto the stage, the Don attempts to blame Leporello for the attack, and Anna, Elvira and Ottavio unmask themselves to publicly denounce the Don. ACT II Don Giovanni exchanges his costume with Leporello and serenades Elvira's maid as soon as Elvira has left with Leporello, believing him to be the remorseful Don. Masetto arrives with a gang of men who are intent on punishing the Don. The Don, pretending to be Leporello, tells Masetto how to find the murderer, then beats Masetto half to death. The Don and his servant meet in a graveyard, where the statue of the Commendatore addresses them; Don flippantly invites him to supper. The statue duly arrives and demands the Don's repentance. Unbending, Don Giovanni is finally dragged screaming into hell. Elvira, Ottavio, Anna and Leporello address the audience with the moral: "Evildoers always come to an evil end."