Palau de les Arts Reina Sofia: Riccardo Primo
Valencia, Palau de les Arts Reina Sofia — Sala Principal
About the Event
Valencia’s spectacular Palau de les Arts Reina Sofia transports visitors into the dramatic world of baroque opera with Riccardo Primo.
Riccardo Primo, Re d’Inghilterra, Honour and Justice as Shield and Crown
One of Georg Friedrich Händel’s most ambitious operas, composed to celebrate the accession of George II, second monarch of the House of Hanover. The noble crusader king was chosen to exalt the monarch’s virtues through Richard I of England, known as Richard the Lionheart. Beyond its propagandistic context, however, the work has exceptional dramatic and human depth, centred on honour and justice during the Crusades in Cyprus. Händel creates a score of heroic brilliance in which vocal virtuosity is not mere ornament, but expresses the power and integrity of a sovereign caught between political duty, personal passion and tyranny. Paul Agnew’s contemporary, deeply theatrical vision—even in concert—restores vital pulse to an opera perhaps staged less often than it deserves.
On its fifth visit to the Palau de les Arts, Les Arts Florissants rescues this fascinating Händel opera from oblivion. The prestigious ensemble, directed by Paul Agnew, has gathered a formidable cast of fresh, emerging voices led by countertenor sensation Hugh Cutting as Riccardo Primo, a role created at the historic premiere by celebrated castrato Senesino. The young British singer is joined by French soprano Mélissa Petit, regular collaborator of Cecilia Bartoli and leading period ensembles, and mezzo‐soprano Juliette Mey, laureate of William Christie’s Le Jardin des Voix 2023, Les Arts Florissants’ academy for baroque singers.
Program
- Georg Friedrich Händel – Riccardo Primo
Address
Palau de les Arts Reina Sofia, Avenida del Professor López Piñero, 1, Valencia, Spain — Google Maps
