On the 27th and 28th of February, the premiere performances of “Falstaff”, Giuseppe Verdi’s final masterpiece, will take place. Libretto by Arigo Boito, following the script of Shakespeare’s comedy “The Merry Wives of Windsor” and scenes from “Henry VIII”. The Sofia Opera premiere is produced by a remarkable team: conductor Grigor Palikarov; director: Marco Gandini; scenography: Italo Grassi; costumes: Anna Biagiotti.
Two acknowledged singers will portray the role of sir John Falstaff: Kiril Manolov and Lucio Galo. Also starring: Atanas Mladenov and Ventseslav Anastasov as Ford, Gabriela Georgieva and Milla Mihova as Alice Ford, Maria Pavlova, Stanislava Momekova and Silvia Teneva as Nannetta; Emil Pavlov and Rinu Mataphu as Fenton; Vesela Yaneva and Mariana Pencheva as Missis Quickly; Alexandrina Stoyanova-Andreeva, Maria Radoeva and Tsveta Sarambelieva as Meg Page; Angel Antonov and Krasimir Dinev as doctor Caius; Nikolay Pavlov, Plamen Dimov-Grandzhan as Bardolph; Alexandar Nosikov, Anton Andreev and Nikolay Voinov as Pistola. With the participation of the Sofia Opera orchestra and choir; choir conductor: Violeta Dimitrova.
“Falstaff” returns to the Sofia Opera stage thirty-nine years after its previous premiere, with the current production being the third one set by the Sofia Opera. For the first time in Bulgaria, Verdi’s masterpiece was performed at the Sofia Opera on 10.02.1942 with conductor Edmondo de Vecchi and director Petar Raichev. The next premiere took place on 14.06.1986 with conductor Dimitar Manolov and director Svetozar Donev.
Don’t forget to partake in the “Opera and ballet up close” discussions which take place one hour before the performance.
We’re expecting you on the 27th and 28th of February and on the 1st and 2nd of March!
Yours, the Sofia Opera
