Metropolitan Opera broadcasts continue on Classical 90.5 at 10:00 a.m. this Saturday, March 19, with a performance of L'Elisir d'Amore (The Elixer of Love) by Gaetano Donizetti. The libretto was composed by Felice Romani, who took his inspiration from Eugène Scribe's libretto for Daniel Auber's le philtre. The performance will be sung in Italian and will run approximately three hours.
L’Elisir d’Amore has been among the most consistently popular operatic comedies for almost two centuries. The story deftly combines comic archetypes with a degree of genuine character development rare in works of this type. Its ending is as much a foregone conclusion as it would be in a romantic comedy film today—the joy is in the journey, and Donizetti created one of his most instantly appealing scores for this ride.
What separates L’Elisir d’Amore from dozens of charming comedies composed around the same time is not only the superiority of its hit numbers, but the overall consistency of its music. It represents the best of the bel canto tradition that reigned in Italian opera in the early 19th century—from funny patter songs to rich ensembles to wrenching melody in the solos, most notably the tenor’s showstopping aria “Una furtiva lagrima” in Act II. Its variations between major and minor keys in the climaxes are one of opera’s savviest depictions of a character’s dawning consciousness.
The opera is set in a small village in rural Italy. Some early editions indicate a location in Basque country. The important fact is that it’s a place where everyone knows everyone and where traveling salesmen provide a major form of public entertainment. The Met’s production sets the action in 1836, when the Risorgimento, the movement for Italian independence, was beginning to gather momentum. Enrique Mazzola conducts.
THE CAST
Adina: Aleksandra Kurzak
Nemorino: Vittorio Grigolo
Belcore: Adam Plachetka
Dulcamara: Alessandro Corbelli
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