show category: opera

Event dedicated to tenor Ioan Buzea, on the occasion of his 85th anniversary  

Performance presented in partnership with  Company Opera 2001

Opera in three acts on a libretto by Antonio Somma, inspired by the play Gustav the Third by Eugéne Scribe

Recommended age: 12+

Un Ballo in maschera is Giuseppe Verdi’s twenty-second work, renowned for its fascinating journey, which began with the tremendous impact of its 1859 world premiere and continued to the present, when it still tops the bill in Operas all over the world.

Verdi’s masterpiece was first brought under stage lights at the Apollo Theatre of Rome. It became famous not only for the extraordinary quality of the composition, but also for the controversial libretto, based on the tragic story of King Gustav III of Sweden, because of which the opera was actually censored for a long period of time.

The heroes of the libretto drawn from the historical truth are Riccardo, Count of Warwick, his good and faithful friend Renato, and Amelia, the wife of the former, who is caught between the two men’s love. The opera offers an impressive medieval story, full of passion and intrigues, where honour and friendship are sacred, love triangles are the most painful taboos, while betrayal, with or without a mask, has a high price. The Cluj production of Verdi’s masterpiece keeps its classical note, the construction of characters, scenery and stage movement, and tries to express the action in a dynamic way, while conveying the feelings and experiences of characters in a natural manner, with openness towards the viewing public.

We are therefore looking forward to welcoming you at this wonderful performance, to discover what lies behind the elegant ball masks of a legendary opera!

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