Un Ballo in Maschera
About the Event
On January 14, 1858, Felice Orsini attends to the life of Napoleon III. This is not the time to stage a regicide: the Neapolitan censorship makes this clear to Verdi, who had his eyes (and pen, with librettist Antonio Somma) on the death of Gustavus III of Sweden during a masked ball. The project moves on to Rome (where it will debut in 1859), not without compromise: everything moves overseas and the king becomes count, governor of Boston. The drama of the man who has to reconcile his public image and the intimate ordeal of reciprocated but impossible love for his best friend’s wife, her torment between guilt and the furious grief of the doubly betrayed spouse, remain intact. The new setting, on the other hand, is not an afterthought, but creates an ideal context for an opera in which Verdi mixes brilliant lightnesses of French taste, the mysterious shadows of the soothsayer Ulrica or palace conspiracies, the nobility of intentions, and the fire of passions.
Practical Information
You must print out your order confirmation and show it at the box office to collect your regular ticket, starting one hour before the start of the performance, at the Teatro Comunale Nouveau at Piazza della Costituzione, 4.
Cast / Production
Director Daniele Menghini
Conductor Riccardo Frizza
Choirmaster Gea Garatti Ansini
Stage Davide Signorini
Costumes Nika Campisi
Light Gianni Bertoli
Orchestra del Teatro Comunale Bologna
Coro del Teatro Comunale di Bologna
Riccardo Fabio Sartori Apr. 13, 16, 19 Matteo Lippi Apr. 15, 17
Amelia Anastasia Bartoli Apr. 13, 16, 19 Maria Teresa Leva Apr. 15, 17
Renato Amartuvshin Enkhbat Sebastian
Oscar Silvia Spessot Apr. 13, 16, 19 Claudia Ceraulo Apr. 15, 17
Ulrica Silvia Beltrami Apr. 13, 16, 19 Chiara Mogini Apr. 15, 17
Silvano Andrea Borghini
