Gianni Schicchi/The Rite of Spring - T01623625243Sung in Italian with English titles. Inspired by an episode in Dante's Inferno, Puccini's short opera Gianni Schicchi is an irresistible satyr play, set around the death-bed of a rich man. The scheming relatives who vie for a chunk of the dead man's fortune are all too recognisable, revealing the greed and avarice which lie just below the thin veneer of their family loyalties. With its vivid characterisation and the spontaneity of its musical invention, Gianni Schicchi is a comic masterpiece in miniature which also contains one of Puccini's best known arias, 'O mio babbino caro'. Christopher Alden's witty and imaginative contemporary staging, first seen in 2015, is revived in a double-bill with Stravinsky's avant-garde ballet The Rite of Spring, co-produced with Phoenix Dance Theatre. Written just five years apart, premiering either side of the First World War, both works are modernist and experimental in tone, offering very different reflections on the decline of an old order, and the beginning of the new. Scottish conductor Garry Walker conducts both pieces, returning to Opera North following Billy Budd (2016).Company Opera North. Company Phoenix Dance Theatre (The Rite of Spring). Conductor Garry Walker. Director Christopher Alden. Design Charles Edwards. Costume Doey Luthi. Lighting Adam Silverman. Choreographer Tim Claydon. Performer Richard Burkhard (Gianni Schicchi). Performer Tereza Gevorgyan (Lauretta). Performer Diego Silva (Rinuccio). Performer Victoria Sharp (Nella). Performer Rebecca de Pont Davies (Zita). Performer Claire Pascoe (La Ciesca). Performer Peter Savidge (Marco). Performer Dean Robinson (Betto di Signa). Performer Stephen Richardson (Simone). Performer Tim Claydon (Dante / Buoso Donati). | |
| 22 Mar 19 | Theatre Royal, Nottingham :: V462 listing details L0791580761 |
| 16 Mar 19 | Theatre Royal, Newcastle upon Tyne :: V570 listing details L147616181 |
| 8 Mar 19 | The Lowry, Salford :: V0655996499 listing details L0306797192 |
| 16 Feb 19 to 2 Mar 19 | Grand Theatre and Opera House, Leeds :: V975 listing details L01967239521 |
