On the 17th, 18th and 19th of January, the Sofia Opera and Ballet audience can experience and exceptionally impactful and unique performance: “Adriana Lecouvreur” by Franscesco Cilea, dedicated to the unique Raina Kabaivanska for her 90th anniversary.
The “Adriana Lecouvreur” performance is dedicated to the great opera prima Raina Kabaivanska for her 90th birthday.
On the 17th, 18th and 19th of January, singers from her school at New Bulgarian University will perform: Vitoria Yeo, Veronika Simeoni, Sofia Soloviy, Giuseppe Infantino, He Kang. Also starring: Sofia Opera lead singers Gabriela Georgieva, Gergana Rusekova, Kostadin Andreev and Ventseslav Anastasov.
The production team:
Conductor and producer: Francesco Rosa; Director: Yuliya Krasteva; Scenographer: Alfredo Troisi; Choreographer: Lyudmila Ilieva; Choir conductor: Violeta Dimitrova and others.
“A story about love, jealousy and the consequences thereof”. This is how director Yuliya Krasteva described the opera “Adriana Lecouvreur” which hasn’t been performed at the Sofia Opera and Ballet since the 1980s.
Francesco Cilea created this opera using a libretto by Arturo Colautti who in turn used Eugène Scribe and Ernest Legouvé’s play as a basis for his work. The opera premiere took place in 1902, in Teatro Lirico – Milano; a time period when the world applauded Giacomo Puccini and Pietro Mascagni’s works. The audience’s reception to “Adriana Lecouvreur” was good: a gallery of images worthy of the opera stage depicted through wonderful arias and ensembles on an exquisite aristocratic or theatrical backdrop.
1730, Paris. The famous actress Adriana Lecouvreur becomes the victim of love intrigues in which a family of aristocrats is involved: a Saxon officer, a French abbot and a theater director from “Comédie-Française”; arguments enough for this half-real, half-legendary story to attract the attention of dramaturgs, poets and composers.
The theater diva Adriana’s doomed love poses the question of whether an artist can lead a true life outside the stage.
On the 17th, 18th and 19th of January, the Sofia Opera and Ballet audience can experience and exceptionally impactful and unique performance: “Adriana Lecouvreur” by Franscesco Cilea, dedicated to the unique Raina Kabaivanska for her 90th anniversary.
Olya Al-Ahmed