Italian tragic opera to wow audiences over three days

1/13/2016 4:48:25 PM

(MENAFN- Muscat Daily) Muscat-

Opera fans in Oman will be treated to Lucia di Lammermoor by Gaetano Donizetti at the Royal Opera House Muscat (ROHM) from January 14 to 16.

The tragic opera will be performed by Teatro Carlo Felice di Genoa and staged by filmmaker Dario Argento who is famed for his fascinating reconstruction of Scottish gothic settings.

Speaking about the opera Giampaolo Bisanti the conductor said 'This is a fresh opera from Italy which will be staged in Oman for the first time and we are delighted. This is one of the best operas ever written in the operatic history. We have two casts performing the show on three days. Lucia is played by noteworthy singer Elena Mosuc who has given 150 performances.'

One of the world's most versatile and expressive sopranos Elena has a doctoral degree in Music Science. Her dissertation was on the theme of madness in Italian opera of the first half of the nineteenth century. Bisanti added 'Lucia's role is very difficult to achieve and we take pride in presenting the play with the best cast.

'The highlight of the opera is the soprano when Lucia goes crazy after killing her husband and starts singing. This scene is the most celebrated of Donizetti's opera where entrancing melodic lines are entwined with Lucia's unravelling emotions. It is expressed in powerful soprano coloratura. Donizetti has explained the scene with few notes and musical elements to express the feelings of Lucia in that moment. It shows she is in another world. Before dying she sings with flute showing off her singing abilities with an e-flat and ending in a dramatic manner.

'The Cadansa scene was added using glass harmonica and we use flute to show this as most opera houses don't have the harmonica.' Donizetti (1787-1848) was inspired by Sir Walter Scott's classic novel The Bride of Lammermoor published in 1819.

Based on a milieu from Scottish oral history the story is set at the end of the 16th century in the brooding lowlands of Scotland where men rule the realm. Clan rivalries political manoeuvring and ancient vendettas leave no place for a woman who falls in love with the wrong man.

The heroine Lucy (Lucia) Ashton whose beloved Edgar happens to be an enemy of her family cannot fulfil her dream of the happiness she hoped love would bring - and is driven mad. Lucia is caught in the dangerous and brutal web of her brother's manipulations her lover's jealous rage and the implacable enmity between her clan and Edgar's.

When Lucia is bullied into an arranged marriage her fragile spirit is shattered. Lucia di Lammermoor represents grand Italian opera at its best in 19th century romantic tragedy. Speaking about ROHM Bisanti said 'This opera house is magnificent. The architecture the stage and technology have been cleverly combined to achieve this landmark. I would like to compliment the people involved.' The show begins at 7pm.

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