Ariodante
Georg Friedrich Haendel
Opera seria in three acts.
Libretto based on Ginevra, principessa di Scozia by Antonio Salvi.
First performed on 8 January 1735 at the Theatre Royal in Covent Garden, London.
New production.
Coproduction with the Royal Opera House Covent Garden.
Infos
Colmar
Théâtre municipal de Colmar
Mulhouse
La Sinne
Strasbourg
Opéra
Entractes included
Prologue
One hour before each performance, a playwright will give you a short 30-minute introduction.
With the support of Fidelio.
Cast
Direction musicale Christopher Moulds Mise en scène Jetske Mijnssen Décors Étienne Pluss Costumes Uta Meenen Lumières Fabrice Kebour Chef de Chœur de l’Opéra national du Rhin Hendrik Haas
Artists
Le Roi d’Écosse Alex Rosen Ariodante Adèle Charvet Ariodante (24/11) Eva Zaicik Ginevra Emőke Baráth Ginevra (24/11) Marie Lys Lurcanio Laurence Kilsby Dalinda Lauranne Oliva Polinesso Christophe Dumaux Odoardo Pierre Romainville Chœur de l’Opéra national du Rhin, Orchestre symphonique de Mulhouse
Presentation
Princess Ginevra and her betrothed Prince Ariodante have it all: they are young, beautiful, in love and in line to inherit a prosperous kingdom. Even nature herself appears to celebrate their union. But this idyllic scene only stokes the jealous flames of rival suitors at the royal court. The ruthless Duke Polinesso plots to marry the princess so he can ascend the throne. He tricks Ginevra’s lady-in-waiting Dalinda, who is infatuated with him, into meeting him that night dressed as Ginevra, making it appear to Ariodante that his beloved princess is unfaithful.
Handel premiered Ariodante in London in 1735 with the castrato Carestini and other contemporary stars of European opera seria. Although the story was inspired by an episode from Orlando Furioso, Ariosto’s epic tale of chivalry, the characters are not mythical or fantastical but deeply human, even if their passions border on the monstrous. The director Jetske Mijnssen takes this powerful psychological dimension as her starting point, transforming the court of the King of Scotland in Antonio Salvi's libretto into a single royal family consumed by secrecy and jealousy. Christopher Moulds, a leading specialist in Baroque music, conducts this gripping, claustrophobic drama in which gilded youth is slowly stripped of its luster by virtuoso vocals and sublime laments.
