Rigoletto: Arena di Verona — 100th Opera Festival
About the Event
From July 1 to August 4, at the Arena di Verona, you can experience Rigoletto, the first opera from Giuseppe Verdi's famous 'popular trilogy'. On four dates you will have the opportunity to discover this absolute masterpiece of Italian melodrama. Immerse yourself in the magical world of Rigoletto and be inspired by touching arias such as 'Caro nome', 'Cortigiani, vil razza dannata' and the timeless 'La donna è mobile'.
For an all‐time musical theater masterpiece that has never been out of the repertoire since its Venetian premiere in 1851, Fondazione Arena looks to a man of the theater (and Italian cinema) of today, calling to direct Antonio Albanese, an award‐winning actor and director who has already signed opera staging at Teatro alla Scala in Milan, Lirico in Cagliari, Petruzzelli in Bari and Filarmonico in Verona, among others.
Rigoletto is a three‐act play by Guiseppe Verdi written in 1851 and based on Victor Hugo’s play 'Le Roi s’amuse' (Fr.: The king amuses himself). The play was banned by the censors for its depiction of immorality and satirical undermining of royal authority, therefore in Verdi’s opera the character of the king becomes a duke. 'Rigoletto' was the first of Verdi's masterpiece to achieve immediate box‐office success following its premiere at the Teatro 'La Fenice' in Venice.
Act 1
A party at the court of the Duke of Mantua. Rigoletto makes jokes at the expense of Count Monterone, whose daughter has been seduced by the Duke, and Monterone curses Rigoletto. Despite Rigoletto's best efforts to shield his daughter Gilda from the outside world, she has met and fallen in love with the lascivious Duke, disguised as a simple student. The Duke and his henchmen kidnap Gilda from her home, leaving Rigoletto devastated.
Act 2
The next morning, the Duke's henchmen gleefully recount the kidnapping. Rigoletto arrives at the Duke's palace, desperate to discover what has happened to Gilda. When he finds her and learns that she has been with the Duke, Rigoletto becomes obsessed with vengeance.
Act 3
Rigoletto hires a hitman named Sparfucile to murder the Duke. Sparfucile's seductive sister Maddelena lures the Duke to an isolated inn. Rigoletto forces Gilda to witness the Duke flirting with Maddalena. Maddelena feels drawn to the Duke, and asks Sparfucile to spare him Sparfucile agrees to do so, if anyone should arrive to die in the Duke's place. Still in love with the Duke, Gilda enters the inn and is killed. Rigoletto discovers that his plot has resulted in Gilda's death, and Monterone's curse is complete.
Practical Information
Included are:
- Ticket to the opera performance in the chosen category
- One month's free access to a premium classical music streaming service
- self‐guided audio tour of Verona in English
Cast / Production
Conductor
##Marco Armiliato: 01, 07, 20 July 04 August##
Il Duca di Mantova
##Yusif Eyvazov: 01, 07 July
Juan Diego Flórez: 20 July
Piotr Beczała: 04 August##
Rigoletto
##Roman Burdenko: 01 July
Ludovic Tézier: 07 July
Luca Salsi: 20 July
Amartuvshin Enkhbat: 04 August##
Gilda
##Nina Minasyan: 01, 07, 20 July
Nadine Sierra: 04 August##
Sparafucile
##Gianluca Buratto: 01, 07, 20 July 04 August##
Maddalena
##Valeria Girardello: 01, 07, 20 July 04 August##
Giovanna
##Agostina Smimmero: 01, 07, 20 July 04 August##
Il Conte di Monterone
##Gianfranco Montresor: 01, 07, 20 July 04 August##
Marullo
##Nicolò Ceriani: 01, 07, 20 July 04 August##
Matteo Borsa
##Riccardo Rados: 01, 07, 20 July 04 August##
Il Conte di Ceprano
##Matteo Ferrara: 01, 07, 20 July 04 August##
La Contessa di Ceprano
##Francesca Maionchi: 01, 07, 20 July 04 August##
Un Usciere di Corte
##Giorgi Manoshvili: 01, 07, 20 July 04 August#
Un Paggio della Duchessa
##Elisabetta Zizzo: 01, 07, 20 July 04 August##
