Pagliacci | Gianni Schicchi
June 14 & 16 • 7:30 p.m.
Pagliacci: Music and libretto by Ruggero Leoncavallo
Gianni Schicchi: Music by Giacomo Puccini | Libretto by Giovacchino Forzano
OVERVIEW || TICKETS || CAST & CREATIVE TEAM || SYNOPSIS || LEARN MORE
Make 'em laugh.
The show must go on. His heart was pounding, and his hands were trembling. He tried to catch his breath. He tried to shake away the image. It kept returning, and it was poison. His wife in another man's arms. Had he become a joke? Was he a clown or a man?
THE OPERA
The 2012 season opens with a double bill of Italian operas, pairing the tragic passion of Pagliacci with Puccini's charming and hilarious Gianni Schicchi. It's a brilliant new production from Opéra de Montréal. Musical highlights include the famous tenor aria "Vesti la giubba" as Canio the clown applies his make-up, and the sparkling soprano showstopper "O mio babbino caro" in Gianni Schicchi.
THE CAST
American tenor Frank Porretta leads the Pagliacci cast in the role of the anguished Canio, and vivacious American soprano Kelly Kaduce, who "sings with bell-like purity and silvery sweetness" (Opera News), debuts as his wife, Nedda.
As Gianni Schicchi's pair of young lovers, Italian soprano Maria Luigia Borsi returns as Lauretta after her heartbreaking Desdemona in our 2010 Otello, and Lithuanian tenor Edgaras Montvidas makes his U.S. debut with a "sumptuously lyric tenor" (Le Figaro, Paris) as Rinuccio.
Pagliacci
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| Kelly Kaduce Nedda |
Frank Porretta Canio |
Roberto de Candia Tonio |
Ljubomir Puskaric Silvio |
Gianni Schicchi
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| Maria Luigia Borsi Lauretta |
Edgaras Montvidas Rinuccio |
Roberto de Candia Gianni Schicchi |
Learn more about Pagliacci | Gianni Schicchi:
A sneak peek at the double bill:
httpv://youtu.be/IOA4EGkUzMg
An interview with stage director Alain Gauthier
Essay: "Clowning Around" by Anne Arenstein
Roberto de Candia, whose roles link the two operas of the double bill, provides an insightful look at the production in this interview with Evans Mirageas:
[audio src="http://www.cincinnatiopera.org/wp-content/uploads/Evans-interviews-Roberto-de-Candia.mp3"]
In The News!
6.26.12 David's Voice Review: Two Operas, One City: Cincinnati Opera's Season Premiere Featured Passion in Firenze
6.20.12 Oakwood Register Review: Cincinnati Opera opens with love, death and laughter
6.17.12 Music in Cincinnati Review: Double Your Fun with Cincinnati Opera Opener
6.15.12 Cincinnati Enquirer Review: Opera's double bill wonderful mix of comedy, tragedy
6.15.12 Cincinnati Enquirer: Opera does double take on love
6.15.12 Opera Lively Review: Pagliacci/Gianni Schicchi at Cincinnati Opera
6.12.12 CityBeat: Onstage: Pride Night at Cincinnati Opera
6.10.12 Cincinnati Enquirer: Twin bill inspires opera director Gauthier
6.10.12 Cincinnati Enquirer: Sopranos of Summer
6.1.12 Opera News: Girls of Summer: Kelly Kaduce
6.1.12 Express Cincinnati: Pagliacci & Gianni Schicchi—double your murder, double your fun
5.18.12 Cincinnati Enquirer: 25 Things To Do: Sweet Sounds: Cincinnati Opera Summer Festival