From the 9th till the 17th of July, the Sofia Opera invites its audience to “St. Alexander Nevsky” square where “Cavalleria Rusticana” by Pietro Mascagni and “Pagliacci” by Ruggero Leoncavallo will be performed. Director: Plamen Kartaloff; costumes: Nella Stoyanova.
Conductors: Francesco Rosa on the 9th, 10th and 11th of July and Daniel Oren on the 15th and 17th of July. This is an international coproduction between opera theaters in Modena, Piacenza, Rimini and Sofia. Here is what director Plamen Kartaloff said:
“It is well-known that since their inception, “Cavalleria Rusticana” and “Pagliacci” are the two perhaps most often performed operas in the world and they were inevitably intertwined to be performed together on one and the same evening, definitely because of the operas’ strong connection to the Italian cultural movement known as Verism which established itself between the end of the 19th and the beginning of the 20th century.
The common trait between the two title is, first and foremost, the theater of passion. Strong characters who look meek but develop and explode in a very short amount of time. Despite their differences, they are deeply and fatally connected between each other. Fates written in blood. The protagonists in both operas are trapped in their free choice of personal happiness and the result is fatal.”
Our leading soloists as well as famous guest stars will perform the main roles. Some of the singers will take part in both titles which is common practice.
Starring in “Cavalleria Rusticana”: Gabriela Georgieva, Gergana Rusekova and Radostina Nikolaeva as Santuzza; Vincenzo Kostanzo, Jorge de Leon, Kostadin Andreev as Turiddu; Ventseslav Anastasov, Veselin Mihaylov and Roman Burdenko as Alfio; Tsveta Sarambelieva, Ina Petrova as Lola; Vesela Yaneva as Mama Lucia.
In the production of “Pagliacci” (which masterfully weaves theater within theater), real life is taken to the stage. Starring as Canio: Amadi Laga, Jorge de Leon. Neda: Milla Mihova and Stanislava Momekova. Tonio: Fabian Belos, Veselin Mihaylov, Roman Burdenko. Beppe: Emil Pavlov and Hrismir Damyanov. Silvio: Atanas Mladenov.
“Yesterday’s history is also the history of today and we wish to tell this story in a simple way, just as it happened, so that the viewer may think, feel and take part in these two timeless dramas by the two composers who create music and visual theater with a powerful emotional impact”, Plamen Kartaloff said.