show category: opera

The astounding success of the opera The Troubadour (,,Il trovatore”) at the time of its 19 January 1853 premiere enabled it to be later placed within the “popular trilogy”, next to other two of Verdi’s masterpieces – Rigoletto and Traviata. The body of the composer’s dramatic works already included patriotic topics or subjects borrowed from English (William Shakespeare, Lord Byron), French (Victor Hugo), German (Friedrich Schiller) Romantic literature, when he approached the writings of his Spanish contemporary Antonio García Gutiérrez (1813-1884) and the drama El trovador.

The action of the opera The Troubadour developed during the four suggestively titled acts (The Duel, The Gypsy Woman, The Son of the Gypsy Woman, and The Punishment) takes place in 15th century Spain and focuses upon Count Alvaro di Luna, Manrico, and Countess Leonore de Seze, with whom both men are in love. However, the intrigue of the story grows deeper than Count di Luna’s jealousy of his rival, troubadour Manrico, whom Leonora also loves. The disappearance some time ago of the Count’s brother, Garcia, kidnapped and killed apparently by an old witch, still lingers upon the present: while the count tries to avenge his brother, the Gypsy Azucena – daughter of the witch burnt on the pyre and Manrico’s mother – tries to punish the di Luna family harshly.

We are looking forward to seeing you discover an enthralling romantic, maternal, filial love story, a story of cruelty and revenge born at the ill-fated intersection of the two extremely divergent worlds of nobility and of the simple Gypsies!

The performance has three breaks and ends around 9.30 p.m.