Adriana Lecouvreur

The last important work by the Calabrian composer, Adriana Lecouvreur – which returns to La Fenice after an absence of over thirty years – owes its existence to Edoardo Sonzogno: Following the success of Arlesiana, the composer entrusted Cilea with the story of the celebrated 18^th-century actress, a woman admired by Voltaire, loved by Count Maurice of Saxony, and perhaps poisoned by a rival. For the libretto Arturo Colautti – who also penned the libretto of Fedora for Umberto Giordano – freely drew inspiration from a comedy by Scribe and Legouvé. He created a text that perfectly suited Cilea’s lyric-elegiac vein as well as the Calabrian composer’s taste for eighteenth-century divertissement, a preference evidenced by the delightful second-act ballet that revisits the Rococo and Arcadian styles.

La Fenice Orchestra & Choir

Conductor Riccardo Frizza
Director Mario Pontiggia
Sets Antonella Conte
Costumes Marco Nateri
Lighting Andrea Ledda

Teatro Lirico di Cagliari and Abao Bilbao Opera House staging